Alzheimer’s Symptoms

Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by a progressive loss of memory in the elderly and is common in persons more than 55 years old. It is one of the most prevalent mental disorders among older people and affects more than 50 percent of those above eighty years. The U.S alone sees 5 million Alzheimer’s patients in a year. It is often confused with signs of ageing when in reality the patient could be steadily going towards his or her death. It is a particularly painful period for the patients as well as their families and friends.

The term was first used by a German Psychiatrist, Alois Alzheimer in 1906. He treated a fifty one year old patient with symptoms similar to dementia. She eventually died within five years and the disease was named after him. In Alzheimers disease brain cells are rapidly damaged.

What Is Alzheimers?

Alzheimers disease is a category of dementia or brain disorder in which a person looses the ability to remember. There is a degeneration of cognitive abilities also. Initially patients might not realize anything is wrong or blame old age for misplacing keys or spectacles. They might have difficulty identifying family members or begin to shun social life completely. Physical deterioration follows since the brain is being attacked. It leads to regular chaos in daily life since sufferers fail to follow directions or perform simple calculations. Sometimes they might get lost in familiar places, like the supermarket, or parks.

It is an emotional shock for the victims. They gradually withdraw from day-today activities and prefer seclusion. Their reflexes slow down and in some cases can become aggressive.

What are the Symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease?

There are prominent indications of contracting Alzheimer’s:

Memory loss, the disorder directly affects mental faculties and the most serious blow is dealt to one’s memory. As the condition progresses, a person might feel he or she is among complete strangers which might cause them to become hostile and defensive.
Forgetting recent events and names of family members, places and food items, daily use devices.
Regularly misplacing clothes, books, glasses, keys, bags, and searching for them over and over again;
Failing to recall faces, colors, appearance, spellings, smell, or differentiating between similar objects
Cognitive abilities gradually diminish in persons suffering from Alzheimer’s. They become confused and startled in familiar environments and lose the sense of space and time.
Drastic changes in sleeping patterns which result in over sleeping or insomnia.

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Failure to identify place and time:

While walking on the street, one might get disoriented about the place or location and might undergo a feeling of being lost or being in a wrong and dangerous place. Sense of time is equally affected and it becomes increasingly difficult to read and understand clock timings and the differences between day-night and change of seasons.
Getting lost in public places or walkways and avenues, in extreme cases, one’s own room may appear strange.
Inability to distinguish between heat and cooler weather – wearing shirts, trousers or piling blankets in summers and wearing light fabric shorts in winter

ŸWeakening analytic and reasoning skills:

There is a weakening in the capacity to think, analyze and reach logical conclusions. The ability to work with numbers, concepts and ideas gradually but steadily declines. It is difficult to follow through with instructions, guidelines or procedures.
Maintaining financial accounts, day-to-day banking activities, counting and paying bills in restaurants or making monetary transactions in shops, or ATMs, working with numbers, performing simple arithmetic calculations like addition or multiplication become impossible or very difficult.
Following recipe instructions, playing musical instruments, sewing, knitting or repairing simple gadgets or helping in laying the table become insurmountable tasks.
Making decisions or fixing up appointments, surfing the tv or operating the washing machine become difficult, understanding conversations or forming connections.

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Motor Skill Impairment:

Coordination between muscles and nerves break down resulting in an inability to make clear speech or movement.
Wearing shoes or picking up objects, placing things in their proper places become difficult.
Walking, running, playing or exercising diminishes.
Speech is slow and unclear since movement is limited.
ŸAltered behavior and shifts in personality.
Alzheimers brings changes in the personality. As brain functioning weakens, personality disorders emerge.
Depression, mood swings, irritability, and aggression.

Change in dietary and lifestyle habits

Alzheimers can be identified when these symptoms are noticed. It occurs in phases and often appears in advanced stages. Since symptoms closely resemble those appearing in old age, it lies untreated and continues to worsen until clearly established. It can appear with other disorders or diseases. Brain tumor, Parkinson’s disease, general malnutrition, severe emotional trauma or life threatening accidents or events, brain injury, long periods of unconsciousness, self-medication and chronic diseases like hypothyroidism and renal damage all produce symptoms which might initially look like Alzheimer’s.

It is important to diagnose it correctly and take proper treatments. Although there is no cure for Alzheimers disease, with treatment it is possible to cure certain symptoms and prolong the life expectancy of the sufferers.

Causes of Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimers destroys brain cells and functioning. Patients in advanced stages show significant shrinkage in brain size and mass. Although exact factors have not been determined yet, doctors have observed that a combination of biological and environmental factors trigger the disease. And since immunity is weakened in old age, the disease spreads quickly.

Some of the factors are:
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Genetic: Although Alzheimers symptoms emerge in persons past fifty five or sixty, older and younger persons are also vulnerable to the disease if they have an Alzheimers gene. A family history of the disease can bring on symptoms early.
Environment/ lifestyle: Sometimes taking new drugs or developing addictions lead to Alzheimers symptoms. Drastic changes in diet or lifestyle disrupts the body’s normal functioning. Not only Alzheimers, but also other types of dementia or psychosis might occur.
ŸBiochemical anomalies: These also lead to Alzheimers. Irregular production of Beta Amyloid (βA) leads to formation of clusters which hamper normal functioning. Similarly, unregulated production of Tau protein cells sometimes causes these to twist and get knotty, ultimately killing off brain cells.

Test to determine Alzheimers

Although no single test can determine whether someone is suffering from the disorder or not, several tests can be run in a series to determine Alzheimers symptoms. These include MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), computerised tomography (CT) scan, PET (positron emission tomography). These provide rapid and accurate images and results of brain mapping. Initial scans may not show any anomaly but mild to severe Alzheimers will show decreased brain area/mass and tangles and plaque deposits in the brain. Apart from scanning, there are tests to determine neurological reflexes, behavioral changes or uncharacteristic cognitive changes. These include checking sense of space and movement, coordination, memory, speech and reasoning skills.
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The person might be asked to write words or draw a picture and follow instructions.

ŸIdentifying cause and effect
ŸIdentify date or time
ŸPick up items
Remember and reproduce words or sentences spoken

A combination of these help determine whether the symptoms point towards Alzheimers or not. These might be able to rule out any other form of dementia or disorder. Since many such symptoms are caused by brain tumors or hemorrhage or neurological disorders, thyroids, vitamin malnutrition, proper diagnosis leads to proper treatment.

Before reaching out for proper treatment it is important to understand the stage of Alzheimers. It can be broadly classified into three stages:

Early or mild Alzheimers
Middle or Moderate Alzheimers
Late or Severe Alzheimers

Stage of Alzheimers

Stage, Duration and Identifying features

Early/ Mild Up to 4 yrs, mild memory loss regarding recent conversation, food or activity, slight coordination problems, needing reminders about day-to-day activities, misplacing keys or glasses
Middle/Moderate Up to 10 yrs, repeated memory loss, mood swings, incoherent speech, loss of space sense, inability to identify family or recall names or faces, social withdrawal, inability of reflexes, movement problems, aggression, depression, mistrust of known and unknown persons, keeping secrets and remaining confined to one’s room or home
Severe/Late Up to 3 yrs Inability to understand time relations like yesterday, today or tomorrow, capacity for speech almost lost, may experience hallucinations, mobility impaired, incontinence, complete amnesia, no numerical or reasoning ability, no sense of logic or analysis

If a loved one is exhibiting Alzheimers like symptoms it is best to take him or her to the family physician who would prescribe a series of tests to rule out other diseases. After that, it’s time to go to a specialist. Patients with Alzheimers symptoms, especially of the late or severe stage need round-the-clock medical attention and care with day-today activities. Timely administration of medicines and therapies is a must. So is a lot of understanding and cooperation.

How can you help someone with Alzheimers symptoms?
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Regular medical check ups
Consider the use of supplements such as omega 3 rich fish oils
ŸA calm, peaceful and supportive home environment
ŸLots of reassurances, time and patience
ŸInstalling sturdy railings and frills on balconyand staircases
ŸRemoving carpets or rugs from the floor to prevent tripping
ŸKeeping sharp items like scissors, knives and glass out of reach
ŸInvolving them in family celebrations and outings

When do Alzheimer’s symptoms strike?

Generally, after 60. People over 65-70 are most vulnerable to this. In the 80+ age bracket almost more than 50 percent suffer from Alzheimers. People as young as 35 still get it owing to heredity causes. Early onset of the disease is due to disease carrying genes being passed on from parents to children or to the alternate generation. The general life expectancy of patients is 8 to 10 years, depending upon the severity of the disorder. Many, unfortunately, continue to live without the ability to even eat or swallow food. Motor skills break down and the person might reach a sedentary and isolated state of existence.

What if you are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s symptoms?

It is natural to undergo emotional trauma at such a diagnosis. But before you give up here’s a list of things to do:
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Ascertain the results and seek proper treatment: Whether or not it’s Alzheimers needs to be determined first. Millions of people worldwide are suffering from this disease and are living with it. There’s no reason why you can’t.
ŸSeek emotional support: Reach out to loved ones. They’re as shocked as you are and sharing in grief brings a lot of relief. Hold on to them. Family and friends provide a steady source of support. It is ok to be weak and vulnerable.
Take it in your stride: Take your time in adjusting to this condition. Talk to your counselor. Share your feelings, symptoms, experiences with the world through forums, communities and social media. You’ll be surprised to find hundreds of forums like these on the Internet. Learn how others are coping.
Arrange for finances: While it may be difficult to take up financial matters on your own, arrange for your treatment. Disbursing funds and making things known to your family is imperative.
Keep yourself involved: Interactions, playing games with younger members of the family, participating in community programs and joining self help group can go a long way in keeping you mentally and emotionally healthy.

What if a loved one is diagnosed with Alzheimers Symptoms?

Seek immediate medical attention. You need to report every bit of memory loss or loss of balance while walking. Accurate diagnosis is the first step to recovery.
ŸNever leave them alone. There will be cases of mood swings, aggression, or depression. Keep your cool, they need your support. Never make them feel low.
Ask them to participate in everyday activities. The more they remain active, the longer they remain healthy.
Alzheimers does not go away from using medicines it is incurable. However, by identifying it’s signs and following regular medical advice, the effects can be lessened to some extent. Advanced research is to find a permanent solution to this disease. The more you learn about Alzheimers symptoms, the better you’ll be prepared to fight it. It is one of the largest causes of death of the elderly on a global scale.

Disclaimer: All information contained on alzheimerssymptomsinfo .com website is intended for informational purposes only. The information is not intended nor suited to be a replacement or substitute for professional medical treatment or for professional medical advice relative to a specific medical question or condition.