Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most deadly diseases and could be classified as one of the silent killers in life. It could be considered a silent killer because most people that have the disease are not diagnosed with it until it is way too late. Since this is such a complex disease there is no cure only medicine to slow down the spreading. The best way to slow down the disease is to be checked regularly. The worst thing is to have it and have no idea that you are living with a disease that is destroying your brain. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention website, (CDC) Alzheimer’s disease is responsible for 26.8 deaths per 100,000. It also ranked 6th on the causes of death in America behind heart disease, cancer, respiratory
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Alzheimer’s disease is a fast growing disease that is slowly starting to affect more and more people. The disease targets your brain and over time you lose more and more of your memory until all of your memory is gone. There are a few stages to Alzheimer’s disease. The first stage is known as mild to early onset, followed by moderate, and the last stage being severe (Alzheimer’s disease). The first stage becomes progressively stronger and more noticeable but does not affect your routine. The second stage is truly when most people recognize the disease or are informed about the disease. Which is why this disease is so deadly because by this stage most things become more and more difficult to remember and accomplish. Things as easy as taking medicine on a schedule becomes difficult and the disease spreads at a faster pace. The third stage is the stage where it is inevitable they will need twenty-four hour care. Actions become almost impossible to do under own power memory loss is at an all-time high. Everything the person does is relearned over and over …show more content…
The condition predominantly affects the cerebral and hippocampus, which lose mass and shrink as the disease advances. The two major neurotransmitters that are affected in the disease are acetylcholine (ACh) and Neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) (Health Communities). According to Dr. Stanley Swierzewki of Health Communities ACh is a neurotransmitter essential for processing memory and learning and NFTs are twisted remnants of a protein called tau, which is found inside brain cells and helps maintain proper cell structure and function. After you are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s your ACh starts to shrink and that is when the memory starts fading and have trouble with activities. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has two drugs to help combat the symptoms of Alzheimer’s which are Cholinesterase inhibitors and Memantine (Mayo Clinic). The medication can be taken at the same time since it targets two different parts of the brains. Cholinesterase inhibitors when taken tries to recreate the amount of acetylcholine that patients lose do to the disease. Since this does not solve the problem, the medicine can only last so long before that amount of ACh cannot produce enough to help the patient. That is truly a scary thought with the fact that you can only take medicine for so long before you cannot even help yourself slow done the disease. Memantine, the other medication, targets the learning and memory. This drug has been
Alzheimer’s disease is a fast growing disease that is slowly starting to affect more and more people. The disease targets your brain and over time you lose more and more of your memory until all of your memory is gone. There are a few stages to Alzheimer’s disease. The first stage is known as mild to early onset, followed by moderate, and the last stage being severe (Alzheimer’s disease). The first stage becomes progressively stronger and more noticeable but does not affect your routine. The second stage is truly when most people recognize the disease or are informed about the disease. Which is why this disease is so deadly because by this stage most things become more and more difficult to remember and accomplish. Things as easy as taking medicine on a schedule becomes difficult and the disease spreads at a faster pace. The third stage is the stage where it is inevitable they will need twenty-four hour care. Actions become almost impossible to do under own power memory loss is at an all-time high. Everything the person does is relearned over and over …show more content…
The condition predominantly affects the cerebral and hippocampus, which lose mass and shrink as the disease advances. The two major neurotransmitters that are affected in the disease are acetylcholine (ACh) and Neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) (Health Communities). According to Dr. Stanley Swierzewki of Health Communities ACh is a neurotransmitter essential for processing memory and learning and NFTs are twisted remnants of a protein called tau, which is found inside brain cells and helps maintain proper cell structure and function. After you are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s your ACh starts to shrink and that is when the memory starts fading and have trouble with activities. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has two drugs to help combat the symptoms of Alzheimer’s which are Cholinesterase inhibitors and Memantine (Mayo Clinic). The medication can be taken at the same time since it targets two different parts of the brains. Cholinesterase inhibitors when taken tries to recreate the amount of acetylcholine that patients lose do to the disease. Since this does not solve the problem, the medicine can only last so long before that amount of ACh cannot produce enough to help the patient. That is truly a scary thought with the fact that you can only take medicine for so long before you cannot even help yourself slow done the disease. Memantine, the other medication, targets the learning and memory. This drug has been