Alzheimer's Association

person's age. It may also be used to describe the set of symptoms commonly associated with certain medical conditions or diseases. MCI is often referred to as a pre-Alzheimer's stage of dementia, although not everybody with MCI will develop Alzheimer's. MCI has also been called "the place between slight forgetfulness and Alzheimer's". Many time the signs and symptoms of MCI may not even be apparent to the individual suffering from it, but they will be more apparent to family and friend. Unlike…

Progressive Retinal Atrophy (PRA) is a common term used for a group of inherited retinal disease. It degenerate the retina of the eye over time, eventually leading to blindness. This condition affects both eyes, and is not painful for the dog. In typical PRA rod photoreceptor responses are lost first followed by cone photoreceptor responses. It is seen in many breeds of dogs and very rarely in cats. It is similar to retinitis pigmentosa (RP) in human. RP is transmitted in different…

Seizures are a neurological condition that is defined as the disruptions in the electrical activity of brain, which leads to alterations of the senses, behavior, and consciousness. First mentioned centuries ago, this disorder had many stigmas attached. It was thought to be the work of witches or demons, and people with epilepsy were shunned. (Langone, 2003) Epilepsy is the Greek word for seizure, and a patient is considered epileptic if they have experienced more than 2 episodes of seizure…

not bother to do anything anymore. But now that there is such a thing as superagers, we have the power to actually continue doings things no matter how old we are and there is a great reason as to why we should. With age comes diseases, such as alzheimer's, muscle atrophy, dementia, and arthritis. Working hard allows people to keep their brain in shape so that they can retain information. In order to truly be a superager, people need to also exercise which helps their body. I think the author…

Dementia of the Alzheimer’s type (DAT) is a common form of dementia that affects individual’s memories. They can be long term or short term and can consist of loss of recent conversation, events and names. The article “Emotional Recognition from Face, Voice, and Music in Dementia of the Alzheimer Type” focused on the “emotional recognition from both face and voice” (Drapeau, Gosselin, Gagon, Peretz, & Lorrain, 2009). According to Drapeau et al., during the onset stages of Alzheimer’s disease…

If people with mild Alzheimer’s come in counter with the therapy of Deep Brain Stimulation then most common mental functions, and some memory shouldn’t be completely lost. Deep Brain Stimulation is kind of like an electrical shock. It is sending waves to block off faulty signals in the brain that would other wise cause problems to the brain or body. It’s not to cure most cases, but more of when your medicine isn’t working anymore, or to slow down the issue. It started with forty-two patients.…

Fieldnote Have you ever been in the presence of a verbal brawl on the brink of a physical altercation, and you cannot help but watch with anxious anticipation? Well I have, and it was in the most unexpected of places, a nursing home. A place that I assumed was a quiet and peaceful community of the old and sweet, proved to be very different. Long gone are my stereotypes I once held of the elderly demographic, and in its place are the men and women who have given me a tour inside their complex…

Because the most significant cause of Alzheimer’s disease is age, a sufferer is likely to have inherited the disease if they develop it at a particularly young age, even though these gene mutations are rare. Alzheimer’s disease has also shown to be inherited through a more complex pattern rather than a single gene mutation. For example, the gene ‘apolipoprotein E’ (which is found in chromosome 19) transports lipoproteins, vitamins and cholesterol into the lymph system and consequently into the…

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological disease, and a chronic condition, which means it progressively gets worse overtime. There is a substance called myelin that wraps around your nerves to protect them, but MS breaks down that substance, and your body attacks itself. The unprotected nerves can't function as they would with normal healthy myelin. The damaged nerves produce many symptoms. Some symptoms include; trouble walking, feeling tired, muscle weakness, blurred vision, numbness and tingling…

Walker Johnson Does the world have a plan to cure one of the world's deadliest diseases? Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that so far cannot be cured. It is the sixth leading cause of death in American adults. It affects about 13 million people worldwide. One in eight people around the age of 65 has it. And about 1 in 2 people over age 85 have Alzheimer’s disease. People with Alzheimer’s survive about half as long as same aged adults without it. How do we get this disease, and how quickly…