Alzheimer's Disease

What is Alzheimer's disease?

Alzheimer's disease is a condition that causes healthy brain tissue to degenerate, resulting in memory loss and declining mental and functioning abilities severe enough to interfere with daily living. Alzheimer's disease is not a normal part of ageing, but the risk of developing this condition increases with age. Alzheimer's disease usually affects people older than 65, and most people over the age of 85.

Scientists believe that it may take a combination of genetic, lifestyle and environmental factors to trigger the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease may start with slight memory loss and confusion, but it eventually leads to irreversible mental impairment that diminishes the person's ability to remember, reason, learn and imagine.

Alzheimer's disease is characterised by:

• continual memory loss
• repeating things, forgetting conversations, missing appointments, routinely misplacing things (often putting them in illogical locations)
• difficulty in finding the right words to express thoughts or even follow conversations
• reduced ability to read and write
• losing sense of time and dates
• getting lost in familiar surroundings
• increasing difficulty in solving everyday problems, such as knowing what to do if food on the stove is burning
• greater difficulty in doing things that require planning, decision-making and judgment
• depression, which is quite commonly associated with this condition.

Testing and diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease  

The doctor will take a thorough history and a complete examination. He/she will also ask the patient to answer a few specific questions as part of the diagnosis. It will be very useful if the patient is accompanied by a close family member who will be able to offer some insight about their daily functioning.

To help distinguish Alzheimer's disease from other causes of memory loss, the doctor may require some tests to be done. Blood tests may be helpful to rule out other potential causes of the dementia, such as thyroid disorders or vitamin deficiencies. A brain scan may also be requested to pinpoint any visible abnormalities such as clots, bleeding or tumours that may be causing signs and symptoms.

Treatment of Alzheimer's disease

Although there is no known cure for Alzheimer's disease, treatment may improve the patient's quality of life. Doctors sometimes prescribe drugs to improve the symptoms that often accompany Alzheimer's disease, including sleeplessness, wandering, anxiety, agitation and depression.

Cholinesterase inhibitors such as donepezil (Aricept®) and rivastigmine (Exelon®) are medications that have been proven to slow the intellectual decline associated with Alzheimer's disease i.e. they improve the levels of certain chemicals in the brain. However, they are not effective for everyone and the side effects include diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting. Symptoms may settle after a while, but may recur if the patient is taking the medication inconsistently.

Alzheimer patients and their carers need support and affection from friends and family. It is important that they understand the condition in order to lend their support. It is advisable to attend to all financial and estate matters as soon as possible i.e. before the condition severely affects the person's decision-making ability. The doctor may provide details for the nearest support groups, nursing institutions and other care facilities.

References

1.  http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/

2. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html