Alzheimer's Disease what is it?
Alzheimer 's disease
HCA/240
University of Phoenix
Alzheimer 's disease
Alzheimer’s disease what is it? Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. A general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging, although the greatest known risk factor is increasing age, and the majority of people are age 65 and over.
Progressive mental deterioration in old age has been recognized and described throughout history. It wasn’t until 1906 that a German physician, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, identified a collection of brain cell abnormalities as a disease. Since the discovery more than 100 years ago, there have been many scientific breakthroughs in the research of Alzheimer’s disease. In the 1960s, scientists discovered a link between cognitive decline and the number of plaques and tangles in the brain. Which than was it that the medical community recognized Alzheimer’s as a disease and not as part of aging. In 1901, a 51 year old woman was admitted to the state asylum in Frankfurt. She was suffering from cognitive and language deficits, auditory hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and aggressive behavior. She was studied by Alois Alzheimer, a doctor at the hospital. During the eighteenth century, the term dementia had a clinical and a legal usage, referring to states of psychosocial incompetence regardless of age, reversibility or pathological antecedents. Despite the efforts of countless organizations dedicated to promoting awareness about Alzheimer’s disease, many misconceptions still exist regarding the disease and the individuals who suffer from it. Memory loss is the hallmark and core feature of Alzheimer’s disease. Patients are not aware of the memory loss and even the relatives try and protect the patient by giving misleading information to the patient.
One of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, especially forgetting recently learned
HCA/240
University of Phoenix
Alzheimer 's disease
Alzheimer’s disease what is it? Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. A general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging, although the greatest known risk factor is increasing age, and the majority of people are age 65 and over.
Progressive mental deterioration in old age has been recognized and described throughout history. It wasn’t until 1906 that a German physician, Dr. Alois Alzheimer, identified a collection of brain cell abnormalities as a disease. Since the discovery more than 100 years ago, there have been many scientific breakthroughs in the research of Alzheimer’s disease. In the 1960s, scientists discovered a link between cognitive decline and the number of plaques and tangles in the brain. Which than was it that the medical community recognized Alzheimer’s as a disease and not as part of aging. In 1901, a 51 year old woman was admitted to the state asylum in Frankfurt. She was suffering from cognitive and language deficits, auditory hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and aggressive behavior. She was studied by Alois Alzheimer, a doctor at the hospital. During the eighteenth century, the term dementia had a clinical and a legal usage, referring to states of psychosocial incompetence regardless of age, reversibility or pathological antecedents. Despite the efforts of countless organizations dedicated to promoting awareness about Alzheimer’s disease, many misconceptions still exist regarding the disease and the individuals who suffer from it. Memory loss is the hallmark and core feature of Alzheimer’s disease. Patients are not aware of the memory loss and even the relatives try and protect the patient by giving misleading information to the patient.
One of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, especially forgetting recently learned
References: Alzheimer 's disease. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.livingstrong.com Alzheimer 's disease. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com