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Alzheimer’s disease, known by many as “The Long Goodbye.” Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. This is a degenerative disorder that attacks the brains nerve cells, or neurons, resulting in loss of memory, thinking and language skills, and behavior changes. This disease is named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer, in 1906, who noticed changes in brain tissue of a woman who had died of a usual mental illness. After the woman had died, Dr. Alzheimer examined her brain and found many abnormal clumps (now called amyloid plagues) and tangled bundles of fibers (now called neurofibrillary or Tau, tangles). With his examination he under covered that the patient experienced memory loss, language
problems, and very unpredictable behavior. Alzheimer’s is characterized by a build-up of proteins in the brain. Though this cannot be measured in a living person, extensive autopsy studies have revealed this phenomenon: The build-up manifests in two ways, (1) Plagues, which deposits of the protein beta-amyloid which accumulates in the spaces between nerves and (2) Tangles, which deposits of the protein Tau which accumulate inside nerve cells. Scientists to this day are still trying to fully understand the cause or causes of this disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a slow disease that progresses in three stages: • Stage 1- An early/preclinical stage with no symptoms, • Stage 2- A middle stage of mild cognitive impairment, • Stage 3- A final stage of Alzheimer’s dementia. What is Dementia? It is the loss of cognitive functioning-thinking, remembering, reasoning, and such behavior abilities to an extent that it interferes with a person’s daily life and activities. Causes of Dementia can vary (to list a few), blood clots in the brain, Parkinson’s disease, front temporal disorders and many more. Some of these conditions may be treatable and possibly reversible. They can be very serious and should be treated by a doctor as soon as possible. An estimated Five million people in the United States are now living with Alzheimer’s, most of these people are age 65 or older, but at least 200,000 people under the age of 65 are also living with an early-onset form of this disease.(