Common Alzheimer's Questions

Alzheimer's is a scary word in the medical community -- as a little-understood degenerative disease with no cure and few early indicators, it occupies a feared position in the annals of medical parlance. Here are a few common questions and answers that should take some of the mystery out of the signs, causes, treatments and diagnoses of Alzheimer's.

What is Alzheimer's disease?

Alzheimer's disease is a brain disease that is the most common trigger of dementia in people of advanced age. It is a degenerative disease with no cure, meaning that it will get worse and worse over time until eventual death. Patients generally lose aspects of their memories, and as the disease progresses they lose the ability to think for themselves and perform basic tasks.

What is Dementia?

Alzheimer's and dementia are often used interchangeably by laypeople, but this approach is incorrect. Dementia is the loss of thinking, remembering and mental reasoning skills that are caused by and often accompanies Alzheimer's. Dementia ranges from mild to severe, and it can completely interfere with a person's day to day life by causing them to forget people, places, tasks, or thoughts that they were thinking

What is the first sign of Alzheimer's disease?

The initial sign is generally considered to be memory loss or trouble remembering basic facts and information. This is not always the case though -- some patients may lose cognitive function, have spatial issues, or display dangerous or troubling judgment before they lose memory function.

What are the causes of Alzheimer's disease?

There is no scientific consensus on what causes Alzheimer's disease. Generally, scientists are in agreement that complex changes that take place in the brain's pathways as it ages are often to blame for Alzheimer's incidence in the elderly population. However, early onset Alzheimer's, which is only diagnosed in patients from 30 to 60, is thought to be triggered by a genetic mutation in the genome. Other than these basic hypotheses, science has little idea what triggers the disease: lifestyle factors like exercise and diet may contribute, and long-term health conditions may play a part as well.

What medicinal approaches are used to treat Alzheimer's?

There is no current cure for Alzheimer's, but there are four distinct medicines that are used to treat its symptoms and slow the disease's progress. For those with mild to moderate Alzheimer's, donepezil, rivastigmine and galantamine are used to varying effect; for moderate to severe Alzheimer's, memantine is used to increase comfort and mental function in patients.

How can I prevent Alzheimer's disease from occurring in my body?

Unfortunately, there is no way to completely prevent the disease from occurring. Scientists believe that exercise, regular mental stimulation and a healthy diet all help people avoid Alzheimer's, but little has been definitively proven.

About Us:

Alzheimer's care provides specialized services to your senior loved ones in every aspect of life. Our services include transportation, cooking healthy meals, exercise to maintain fitness goals, socializing and many other tasks. Senior years can bring limitations due to weaknesses and different diseases and your loved one may be concerned to lose independence if admitted to a care facility.

Tag: # Home Care Boca Raton, 

Services: # Elder Care, # respite care, # Live in Care, # Alzheimer's Care, # Dementia Care