Alzheimer's
By: Cammy Vasbinder
What is Alzheimer's?
Alzheimer's is a disease that affects the brain and nervous system. It is a progressive disease that attacks the brain's nerve cells. It is the most common cause of the premature senility. This disorder is in the gene mutation category and it has many affects and symptoms to the human body. The picture is a picture of a brain without the disorder and a picture of a brain with the disorder and how it affects the brain visually.
When was this first discovered? And by who?
Alzheimer's was first discovered in 1906 by Dr. Alois Alzheimer. This German physician first described his disease as " a peculiar disease." In a patients brain Dr. Alzheimer saw dramatic shrinkage and abnormal deposits in and around nerve cells. The picture below is Dr. Alois Alzheimer.
Life expectancy?
This disorder can have a lot of impact on an individuals life depending on the age, how bad the disease is, and how long they have had it before they noticed changes. The average life expectancy after diagnosed is eight to ten years. Some are as short as three years and others are as long as 20. It all depends on the little things as of how you have handled it and how long it took to figure out what was really going on. The picture below is an example of about how many Americans have this disease a year.
Symptoms
The symptoms are divided into two categories which are cognitive ( intellectual ) and psychiatric. Some symptoms of cognitive are amnesia, aphasia, and agnosia. Other common symptoms are memory loss, loss of ability to walk, loss of talking, and the inability to recognize the five senses. The picture below is a bunch of other symptoms of Alzheimer's.
Description of this disorder
Alzheimer's is a very common disease. Recent data says nearly 15% of people 71 years of age or older experience it more. Alzheimer's is said to be a dominant pattern. Researches have not found a specific gene that directly causes the late -onset form of the disease. The picture below is a little process on how Alzheimer's happens.
Is there anyway to prevent this disorder?
Doctors do not know what causes the disease.They can't recommend any steps to prevent it. This disease is very progressive and they had medications to help with some symptoms cognitive change.
Organizations
There are many organizations and support groups for this disorder. They have a foundation called Alzheimer's foundation of America. This foundation is provided with care and support towards the people that have this disorder. The picture below is the logo and representation of the Alzheimer's foundation.