Alzheimer's Disease: Not Just Memory Loss

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Diagnosis

The only method of definitively diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease is a brain autopsy. However, physical assessments allow physicians to make a precise judgment of AD. The Alzheimer’s disease Assessment Scale is normally used to measure the severity of the disease. The ADAS evaluates the patient’s orientation, memory, reasoning and language on a scale of 0 to 70. The higher the score get the higher level of cognitive impairment the patient has.

Being that there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, doctors have put in place treatments that extend the individual’s mindfulness as well as memory. These medications are normally taken in the early stages to minimize memory loss. One drug that has a positive effect is tacrine, a drug that is used to increase acetylcholine, which helps to improve memory (Cavanaugh & Blanchard-Fields, 2015). Patients are also given anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medicines to help their mood changes.

Conclusion

Clearly, knowledge regarding Alzheimer's disease has expanded far from thinking that it is just a loss of memory. This disease produces a full-blown dementia in its patients and has an emotional impact millions of people and their families. This probably why scientists have still not found a cure for it. People with Alzheimer's suffer for years before they actually pass away. I believe the saddest thing about this disease is that the patients do not even remember their family and friends. They basically don’t even know the meaning of life by the time they pass away. People suffering from Alzheimer's are emotionally dead long before the physically die.

References

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Cavanaugh, J., & Fields, F. (2015). Adult development and aging (7th ed.). Stamford (CT): Cengage Learning.

Popper, P., Farber, D. B., Micevych, P. E., Minoofar, K., & Bronstein, J. M. (1997). TRPM-2 Expression and Tunel Staining in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Studies in Wobbler andrdMice. Experimental neurology, 143(2), 246-254.

Issa, A., M., & Keyserlinkgk, E. W. (2000). Current and future clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease: Evolving ethical concerns. Progress in Neuro Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 24, 1229-1249.

Kukull, W. A., & Ganguli, M. (2000). Epidemiology of dementia: Concepts and overview. Neurologic Clinics, 18, 923-949.

Peterson, R. W. (2000). Aging, mild cognitive impairments and Alzheimer's disease. Neurologic Clinics, 18, 789-805.

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