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Describe a range of types of dementia
Effective care and treatment of patients with dementia
Effective care and treatment of patients with dementia
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Recommended: Describe a range of types of dementia
Dementia is a decline in your mental ability that is severe enough to interfere with your daily life. Dementia is not a specific disease it is an overall term that describes a wide range of symptoms. Scientist and Doctor Alois Alzheimer presented a paper in 1906 on this disease also known as Alzheimer’s disease. Dementia can be severe enough to reduce a person’s ability to perform the everyday activities, like normal. There are a couple of different types of dementia that you can get. A German physician named Alois Alzheimer, who is a pioneer linked symptoms to microscopic brain changes. The first person he got to work with, to discover dementia, was a woman named Auguste D. He noticed that she had profound memory loss along with other worsening …show more content…
Of course the doctors go through many medical history, physical exams, lab tests, and the characteristic changes in thinking, day to day function and behavior associated with each type. It is easier to determine if someone has dementia but it’s harder to figure out which type of dementia someone has. There is a treatment for dementia but it depends on the cause. If your dementia is severe then sometimes it cannot be treated and there is no cure that slows or stops the progression. There is a path to effective new treatments for dementia, but it is only through increased research funding and participation in clinical studies. Through research it seems that the medicine is only there to help with memory loss and not the actual disease. There is a growing number of herbal medicines, and dietary supplements that will help promote your memory enhancers or treatments that help delay Alzheimer’s disease along with many other related dementia. There is many clinical trials going on to help us better understand dementia and how to prevent it. There is no way of getting out of having dementia. You can basically only slow the process down if you have caught it early …show more content…
Some types are even worse than others, but they all seem to be having the same case studies shown. It is really hard to treat and cure this disease. You can take the chance of doing a clinical trials and paying a lot of money for them to practice and study on someone with dementia. Dementia is very hard on the patients with it along with the people caring for them. The people caring for them have to take extra time out of their day to take care and check up on their loved one. Some days it is rough, some days there might be no change, some days you might even have a change for the better, and some days it is a change for the worse. People that are in the hands of dementia patients have to take a lot of care and put a lot of effort into
Dementia patients must have the right to participate in all decisions concerning their care. Every person in this world has the same equal rights, no matter the situation. Doctors, caregivers, nurses, and even family members brush off the request of the person suffering from dementia each and every day. Most people call this carelessness while others call it freedom and in all reality, it is far from freedom. Luckily, there are many people who fight for the freedom everyone deserves. The majority of "Health professionals are usually keen to keep people with dementia at the center of decisions. Independent advocacy can support this by giving the extra time and skills needed to help people have a voice without the tensions of any other role"
The article “Cracking the Alzheimer’s code” by Linda Marsa discusses the history, discoveries and advancements for Alzheimer’s disease. The discovery of Alzheimer’s disease was revealed through a German physician named Alois Alzheimer. Alzheimer first discovered Alzheimer’s in the year 1901 while he was interviewing a mentally Ill patient named Auguste Dexter. The beginning of his discovery was due to the fact that Dexter was exhibiting uncontrollable behaviors that included jealously, screaming, confusion and paranoia. After Dexter had passed away, Alzheimer saw this as an opportunity to examine her brain under a microscope in thin pieces. To Alzheimer’s surprise, he discovered two abnormal substances on brain slices that were called amyloid
Dementia – is the chain of signs and symptoms which effect the human brain. As a result of this changes in the brain occur which are irreversible. These changes lead to memory loss, difficulty in planning and learning, confusion and changes in behaviour.
There are no current treatments for Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers are constantly looking for new and advanced treatments to alter the course. Any breakthrough in progress will ensure the improvement of the quality of life of people with dementia.
“…a group of symptoms that are caused by changes in brain function. Dementia symptoms may include asking the same questions repeatedly; becoming lost in familiar places; being unable to follow directions; getting disoriented about time, people, and places; and neglecting personal safety, hygiene, and nutrition. People with dementia lose their abilities at different rates.”
Doctors need a sure way to diagnose the disease before treatment or studies can be done. The diagnosis is an autopsy of brain tissue examined under a microscope. In addition, medical history, a physical exam, and mental status tests are used for diagnosis (Posen, 1995). Often, tests are done to rule out other potential causes of the dementia. This allows the identification of other causes of thinking and behavioral changes to be made before concluding that the patient has Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia. The tests that are requested to be done include CT and MRI scans to rule out strokes or brain tumors which could account for change in memory and behavior; thyroid and psychological tests which can also detect thinking and behavior problems (Posen, 1995).
The first case of dementia was discovered in 1906 by a German physiatrist Alois Alzheimer. It was first observed in a female patient and she was forty-one years old her name was Auguste D. Dr. Alzheimer observed a decline in the patient’s cognitive abilities. She lost her memory, she exhibited behavioral issues, and she suffered from hallucinations, lost the ability to comprehend language, disorientation and lost her speech. After Augusta’s passing Dr. Alzheimer preformed an autopsy that showed the classic triangles and knots we associate today with Alzheimer. Those triangles and knots are a proteins and plaque. The brain is self looked smaller and had distinct characteristics. Still with modern medicine the only way to diagnose a person with Alzheimer is after their death with an autopsy. (THE ALZHEIMER'S PROJECT, 2014).
Dementia has caused challenges and heartache for many families I have met. A loved one who no longer recognizes you could be difficult to cope with. I have had clients who do not know their own children and are unaware of their surroundings. Even though they have lived in the same home for over 30 years; it is now a strange new place to explore. Closets, bedrooms, and garages that were once frequented are now entered with caution and wonder. Everyday items are puzzles just waiting to be solved. As the disease progresses the harder it is to grasp the present. The past, like an old friend, beckons and comes to life bringing former friends and relatives of long ago, to the surface. Stories of days gone by are repeated and relived over and over. Constantly searching while longing to understand what is happening. Not being able to piece together the answers is frustrating. With frustration comes irritability and sleeplessness turning days into nights and nights into days. Everyday tasks became impossible, confusing, and troublesome. Dementia sometimes goes for years undetected; it is one of the most difficult diseases to diagnose. Because Dementia is an incurable disease that progresses with time we need to be diligent in finding a cure to prevent more victims.
Alzheimer's Disease Introduction to Alzheimer's Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain. It was first described by the German neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer (1864-1915). in 1905. This disease worsens with advancing age, although there is no evidence. that it is caused by the aging process.
I know that there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease and that you just have to take it one step at a time. Families have to learn how to deal with a loved one who has Alzhemier's disease; it will not be very easy. I know that Alzheimer's disease is when people get confused and lose their memory. You never know when you will get Alzheimer's disease or if you will even get it. It is just something that happens, that you and your family have to learn how to live with it.
Alzheimer’s has no cure. Current treatments focus on maintaining mental function, managing behavioral symptoms, and slowing or delaying the symptoms of disease. Four medication used to treat Alzheimers are Donepezil (Aricept), Rivastigmine (Exelon), and Galantamine (Razadyne) which are used to treat moderate Alzheimer's,and Memantine (Namenda) which is used to treat moderate to severe Alzheimer's. They work by regulating neurotransmitters to help maintain thinking memory, speaking skills and help with behavioral problems. There are also ongoing clinical trials for interventions such as immunization therapy, cognitive training, physical activity, antioxidants, and effects of cardiovascular and diabetes treatments.
In the field of Psychology you can find an abundance of mental disorders that can have an affect on people all throughout the world. Out of all the mental disorders that can be found around the world, some of them are more well-known and more widespread than others. The following disorders could be described as being well-known and widespread disorders: depression, bi-polar disorder, Alzheimer's, and OCD, which could also be called Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. All of these mental disorders can be very dangerous and possibly deadly if people don't receive the proper care in order to be able to contain these disorders. Out of these very dangerous and possibly deadly disorders, I believe that Alzheimer's is the most interesting disorder. I think that Alzheimer's is the most interesting disorder, because I think we have the least about of knowledge of the Alzheimer's disorder. As a society we still to this day don't have a cure that totally stops this disorder.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is one of the leading causes of death in America and there are currently more than five million people living with the disease (Alzheimer’s Association, 2014). What may be most troubling about these numbers is the fact that Alzheimer’s disease has no current cure. Alzheimer’s disease is a neurocognitive disorder and a common form of dementia that will affects a person’s memory, way of thinking and their behavior (Alzheimer’s Association, 2014). AD typically develops slowly and the more time a person has the disease the worse the symptoms will become. AD in its later stages becomes so severe that people with the disease cannot even do simple daily tasks. Although there is no cure there are still ways to prevent, delay, and possibly treat the disease.
Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, and this terminal, progressive brain disorder has no known cause or cure. Its greatest known risk factor is increasing age which is why is it is infamous for developing in the elderly, typically in ages 65 or over, however for the 5%(1) that develop Alzheimer’s in their 40s or 50s it is known as early Alzheimer’s. Because Alzheimer’s worsens over time, those with it tend to struggle with completing daily tasks especially elderly people. Given that there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, the treatments available slow the worsening of dementia symptoms and improve quality of life for those with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. It is not known what causes Alzheimer's, however, those with Alzheimer's have been found to have abnormal amounts of protein (amyloid plaques) and fibres.(The amyloid plaques and fibres are found in regions of the brain where problem solving and thinking take place e.g The cerebrum.) Due to the unusual amounts of amyloid plaques and fibres, it reduces the effectiveness of healthy neurons and eventually, destroying them.
A myth about Alzheimer disease says that nothing can be done about the disease. This is not true. Much can be done to assist the person with Alzheimer’s disease to maintain the highest possible level of functioning as long as possible and in providing the highest quality of life.