Basic Facts of Alzheimer´s Disease - 708 Words

Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative disease of the brain that causes gradual loss of memory, judgement and ability to function. This age-related, non-reversible brain disorder develops over a period of years. This disease is named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer. He had noticed changes in the brain tissue of a women who had died of an unknown mental illness. Alzheimer’s usually appears in people over the age of 65 but earlier stages of Alzheimer’s is created throughout adulthood. The early stages of Alzheimer’s is yet unknown but the damages to the brain is said to be caused up to a decade earlier before the problems become evident. Amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and neurons, being the loss of connection between nerve cells, are the main features in Alzheimer’s disease. Abnormal deposits of protein form amyloid plaques and tangles throughout the brain and the at once healthy brain begins to work less efficiently. Over this time, neurons then lose the ability to function and communicate with each other and they eventually end up dying. The damage caused by this soon spreads to a near structure in the brain called Hippocampus. Hippocampus plays important roles in the the brain such as long-term memory. As more and more neurons tend to die, the affected parts of the brain begin to shrink. By the final stage of Alzheimer’s, the damage has spread throughout the affected patient’s brain and the patient’s brain tissue has significantly shrunk. Alzheimer’s disease can also beShow MoreRelatedAlzheimers Disease : My Grandmas Killer1510 Words   |  7 PagesAlzheimer’s Disease: My Grandma’s Killer Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is characterized by gradual cognitive decline that beings with the inability to create recent memories or thoughts which then proceeds to influencing all intellectual functions (Mayeux Stern, 2012) . 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Alzheimer’s is common among the elderly, yet surprisingly, two-thirds of the people affected are women. While two thirds affected are women, they are also more likely to be from an African-American or Hispanic descent. Alzheimer s disease is present in 60 to 80 percent of dementia patients (Mayo ClinicRead MoreDr. Alice Howland Is A Thoroughly Modern Middle Aged Professional Woman1540 Words   |  7 Pagestesting, Alice receives the stunning diagnosis of early-onset Alzhe imer s. It is both numbing and terrifying for her. She is 50 years old. Alice struggles to tell John, who is a cancer cell biologist, because telling him will make it all real. When she does, his reaction is almost cerebral and clinical. At first reluctant to believe her, John offers Alice no comfort. Instead he tells her he needs to find out more about Alzheimer s. They decide to have Alice undergo genetic testing, which if positive