Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s is the most common disease among a group of dementia diseases. The incidence of Alzheimer’s increases with advancing age. People with a family history of dementia are at higher risk. Other risk factors for Alzheimer’s other than age and family history:

• Female gender
• Low education level
• Frequent exposure to head trauma that causes unconsciousness, such as boxers
• Occupational materials used (Electricians, mechanics, switchboard operators, welders, and carpenters)
• Conditions that cause cerebrovascular diseases such as high cholesterol and blood pressure, diabetes, smoking, obesity
• High alcohol use in middle age
• Limited social relationships, loss of a spouse, multiple divorces, a history of stress and depression requiring treatment
• Presence of some markers such as ApoE-Ꜫ4 that can be detected in the body

The diagnosis of Alzheimer’s is made by a detailed anamnesis taken from the relatives of the patient and a mental examination performed in accordance with the education level of the patient. Tests for the evaluation of mental status, molecular genetic examinations, electrophysiological tests , and brain imaging methods help the diagnosis.

Even if it pauses for months, either spontaneously or with treatment, Alzheimer’s progresses continuously over the years. Various drugs affect the course of the disease. Behavioral and cognitive practices are also included as complementary elements to drug therapy.

Family members should be adequately informed and should receive help for education and social support. Patients should not be isolated from social life, mental and physical activities should be encouraged, unnecessary confrontations with the patient should be avoided as much as possible.

What is Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s disease is a disease that occurs due to the death of brain cells in a certain process. Alzheimer’s, the most common type of dementia, is also known as a neurological disorder. The disease causes the formation of beta-amyloid plaques in people. It starts with a simple forgetfulness in the first stages and progresses to forgetting even the people closest to the patient over time.

What Kind of Disease Is Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s disease, a common type of dementia, causes brain cells to disappear over time. For this reason, among all Alzheimer’s symptoms, the first that comes to mind is forgetfulness. Thought, behavior, and especially memory functions gradually decrease, and the disease becomes more severe after a certain stage. However, it takes years to reach advanced stages. Although patients experience minor forgetfulness at first, they become unable to control themselves over time.

What Is The Age Range For Alzheimer’s Disease?

Since Alzheimer’s disease is a type of dementia, it is usually seen in people over 65 years of age. In other words, the Alzheimer’s age range is generally shown as 65 years and older. However, it can also affect younger individuals from time to time. Therefore, it is not exactly known as a disease of old age. Only the fact that it is seen in the elderly at a rate of 90% has qualified this disease as a symptom of dementia.

What Causes Alzheimer’s Disease?

There are many causes of Alzheimer’s. We can list the causes of Alzheimer’s disease as follows;

• Genetic factor,
• Advanced age,
• Down syndrome,
• Smoking,
• Cholesterol and high blood pressure,
• Sleep disorders,
• Obesity,
• Head traumas,
• Unbalanced and unhealthy diet.

However, despite all these factors, the cause of the development of the disease has not been fully determined today. Nevertheless, these factors have a great influence on the emergence of the disease.

What are the Symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s disease is usually manifested by poor performance in mental and behavioral areas. Although the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease are mild in the initial phase, they become evident over time. The initial symptoms of the disease arise as forgetting the location of objects or places to go. Yet, these small forgetfulnesses become more serious over time. For this reason, Alzheimer’s basically manifests itself with forgetfulness that is not remembered later.

How Does Alzheimer’s Disease Affect Daily Life?

As we mentioned above, forgetfulness comes first among Alzheimer’s symptoms. Since minor forgetfulness is observed in the early stages of the disease, patients associate this with fatigue, intense work schedule, or insomnia. However, over time, patients become depressed. In this case, Alzheimer’s disease is often undiagnosed. However, the person’s relatives definitely realize that there is a problem. In the middle stages, forgetfulness gets more serious. Reading and writing disorders, communication disorders, sleep disorders become evident.

Alzheimer’s Disease: Other Symptoms

Alzheimer’s disease is not limited to forgetfulness. The stages of Alzheimer’s disease have distinctive symptoms. However, in addition to these symptoms, symptoms that vary according to certain conditions are also attributed to the disease. We can list these symptoms as follows;

• Hallucination,
• Lack of motivation,
• Aggression and violence,
• Problems in speaking and writing skills,
• Inability to adapt to the environment,
• Depressed mood,
• Cognitive blurring.

Although these symptoms are usually seen in the early stages of the disease, they can also be seen in the advanced stages from time to time. However, with the progression of the disease, the recent and distant past is completely forgotten and the patients have difficulty in recognizing even themselves. Patients in this situation are not in a position to maintain their daily lives and need care.

Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease, which causes behavioral, thought and memory problems, includes certain stages. These stages are manifested by the gradual increase in the symptoms of the disease. The disease typically consists of 3 main stages and has a slow progression rate. Stages of Alzheimer’s disease are;

• Early (mild) stage,
• Middle stage,
• Last (late) stage.

The average Alzheimer’s patient lives for 4 to 8 years, from the date of initial diagnosis. However, depending on some factors, they can live up to 20 years.

Alzheimer’s Early Stage

In the early stage of Alzheimer’s, patients work independently and can control themselves. Patients continue their social lives as before. However, during Alzheimer’s disease, they may experience minor forgetfulness from time to time, such as forgetting familiar places or the location of objects. Other people around the patient realize this situation, and if a detailed control is made, physicians detect a concentration disorder.

Alzheimer’s Middle Stage

The middle stage of Alzheimer’s is known as the longest stage, and as the disease progresses, patients now require care. In the early phases of the middle stage, Alzheimer’s disease presents with milder symptoms. Patients may have difficulty paying bills or driving. Nevertheless, these difficulties are short-lived, and most of the time they continue their lives in their normal course. However, at this stage, due to the severely damaged nerve cells, it becomes increasingly difficult to do routine tasks and patients become more nervous.

Alzheimer’s Last Stage

The last stage of Alzheimer’s is characterized by the incapability of the patients to take care of themselves. At this stage, Alzheimer’s disease causes the person to lose control of himself/herself and to recognize even himself/herself with difficulty. Patients have difficulty speaking, walking, and even swallowing. They are unable to perform daily activities and definitely need help. At the same time, they are very vulnerable to pneumonia-like diseases.

How to Test for Alzheimer’s Disease?

Alzheimer’s disease is a disease that occurs as a result of the loss of memory abilities and damage to the brain function of the person. Therefore, whether a person is affected is determined by Alzheimer’s testing that focuses on memory problems and other examinations. Although the tests are usually performed by physicians, it is possible to find non-medical tests as well. But of course, a medical test should be performed for a more accurate result. We can list Alzheimer’s tests as follows;

• Pre-Examination Test,
• Neuropsychological Tests,
• Neurophysiological Test,
• Mini Mental Test,
• Nuclear Medicine Test,
• Clock Drawing Test,
• Laboratory General Tests.

Which Tests Are Used to Diagnose Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s treatment tests begin with a pre-examination test. In this test phase, the behaviors of the patient are observed to determine the main symptom. Another examination includes neuropsychological and neurophysiological tests. Whether there are symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is examined more carefully, and the core symptom is determined. In the mini mental test, an 11-item questionnaire is prepared, and the patient’s condition is evaluated over 30 points. In the nuclear type test, nuclear medicine examinations are carried out based on the developing technology. In the laboratory tests, genetic information is gathered, and following additional tests, the disease is diagnosed. In the clock drawing test, patients are asked to place numbers in the clock, and skill points are given.

Alzheimer’s Treatment

There is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s disease. However, examinations are carried out based on the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, and the treatment process starts with certain tests. Although these treatments do not prevent the progression of the disease, they can slow down the dementia process and prolong patients’ life. Today, Alzheimer’s treatment is carried out to improve the patient’s quality of life. Though, diagnosing the disease in the early stages and preventing its development is a widely applied treatment process worldwide.

Alzheimer’s Treatment with a Blood Test

Alzheimer’s disease can be diagnosed at an early age with a blood test. With the Alzheimer’s blood test, the level of the peptide called Amyloid Beta in the blood is measured, and thereby the patient can be diagnosed. It has been determined that Amyloid Beta peptide increases significantly at the beginning of Alzheimer’s disease, but decreases throughout the disease as it is trapped in the brain. Therefore, the blood test easily detects the amount of this peptide and enables the prevention of the disease from the early stages.