Alzheimer. What is it? Essay

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In the early 1900’s a physician named Alois Alzheimer provided care for a patient with rapidly declining severe dementia. After she died, he was able to perform an autopsy on her brain. Alzheimer was able to study, in detail, the cellular changes in the brain’s nervous tissue. What he found was an atrophy of the gray matter surrounding the brain. He also found bundles of neurofibers and the plaques that are now a distinguishing characteristic for a definitive diagnosis of what we call Alzheimer’s disease today. More than 5 million people are living with Alzheimer’s. An estimate 5 million people age 65 or older and approximately 200,000 individuals under than 65 who have younger Alzheimer’s. It is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks. Those with Alzheimer's live an average of eight years after their symptoms become noticeable to others, but survival can range from four to 20 years, depending on age and other health conditions. Although current Alzheimer's treatments cannot stop Alzheimer's from progressing, they can temporarily slow the worsening of dementia symptoms and improve quality of life for those with Alzheimer's and their caregivers. Today, there is a worldwide effort under way to find better ways to treat the disease, delay its onset, and prevent it from developing. They are 7 stages that also consist of the symptoms, not everyone will experience the same symptoms or progress at the same rate. Stage one: (No impairment) shows no signs of memory loss. Stage two: (Very mild) having memory lapses, forgetting forgettable everyday words or the location of familiar objects. Stage three: (Mild cognitive) Friends, family and co-workers start to get notice difficulties. They will also forget names or coming up with words to finish conservation. Increasing trouble with planning and organization. Stage four: (Moderate cognitive decline) forget recent events, Greater difficulty performing complex tasks, such as planning dinner for guests, paying bills or
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