1 in every 3 seniors will develop some type of dementia and will die because of it. Alzheimer’s Disease is the most common form of dementia affecting about 5 million people right now in the United States. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, which is a term that describes progressive loss of function of neurons in the brain. The early symptoms are often confused for normal age related symptoms, such as memory loss, which is one of the main reasons there are such a low number of early onset diagnosis. Diagnosis consists of an evaluation of behavior, thinking abilities, a brain scan and an evaluation of brain tissues. It becomes particularly difficult after diagnosis, as there usually needs to be full care and attention, but
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The estimation indicates that 35.6 million people are currently living with dementia. Alzheimer 's is officially the 6th leading cause of death in the United States and the 5th leading cause of death for those aged 65 and older. The average life expectancy after being diagnosed is approximately seven years; due to the loss of memory and the ability to do simple tasks, such as swallowing, which keeps our bodies alive and functioning properly. With Alzheimer’s disease, there are two variables that are known to researchers that may correlate with mortality. The first being the severity of dementia and the second is the age at onset of …show more content…
Scientists are aware of risk factors such as developing it due to hereditary reasons, and they are aware that the plaques and tangles in the brain that cause the brain to shrink significantly and kill brain cells, obviously has something to do with it. But unfortunately they are still completely unaware as to why this all occurs. As you age its completely normal to develop these plaques and tangles but its not yet known as to why some people get extremely severe tangles and plaques and why it could be the cause of Alzheimer’s. Another large gap in knowledge are treatments, as it is difficult to create treatments if scientists are unaware of what exactly is causing the
The estimation indicates that 35.6 million people are currently living with dementia. Alzheimer 's is officially the 6th leading cause of death in the United States and the 5th leading cause of death for those aged 65 and older. The average life expectancy after being diagnosed is approximately seven years; due to the loss of memory and the ability to do simple tasks, such as swallowing, which keeps our bodies alive and functioning properly. With Alzheimer’s disease, there are two variables that are known to researchers that may correlate with mortality. The first being the severity of dementia and the second is the age at onset of …show more content…
Scientists are aware of risk factors such as developing it due to hereditary reasons, and they are aware that the plaques and tangles in the brain that cause the brain to shrink significantly and kill brain cells, obviously has something to do with it. But unfortunately they are still completely unaware as to why this all occurs. As you age its completely normal to develop these plaques and tangles but its not yet known as to why some people get extremely severe tangles and plaques and why it could be the cause of Alzheimer’s. Another large gap in knowledge are treatments, as it is difficult to create treatments if scientists are unaware of what exactly is causing the