Unit 40 Dementia Research Paper

“The concept of dementia has been around since early civilizations. Ancient philosophers viewed mental decay as a normal part of ageing. The prevalence and study of dementia increased as the lifespan of humans extended. In the late 1800s, with advancements in medicine and the ability to look inside the brain, the medical community realized that diseases could cause this deterioration. The most common dementia was named, in 1910, after Alois Alzheimer, a German psychiatrist.

People with dementia don’t know what they want or can’t communicate what they want Dementia is a natural part of aging Once you have dementia there is nothing you can do Only the elderly get dementia People with dementia can’t understand what’s going on I should correct what a dementia sufferer says when they are wrong There is nothing I can do to lower my risk of dementia

It is truly amazing how such simple things can drastically change the life of an individual suffering from Alzheimer's and dementia. Who would have thought something so simple as a doll could benefit in so many different ways. What a wonderful idea to give them a sense of responsibility and make them once again feel needed .The pet is also a great idea to allow them to reminisce about their past memories of an animal they may have had in their past. Allowing them to participate in simple chores is a great way for them to become engaged and allow them to feel independent, helpful, and needed. They must love being able to tend to household chores as they once did before the onset of the disease. You are blessed to have experience in this field

Dementia is defined as a chronic or persistent disorder of the mental processes caused by brain disease or injury and marked by memory disorders, personality changes, and impaired reasoning. However, what most of us do not know is that dementia is a general disorder that has a few subcategories. Those categories include Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia and frontal-temporal dementia, to name a few. Although statistically dementia is experienced at a similar rate amongst Japanese-Americans and caucasian Americans, their rates in the subtypes are different. Japanese-American’s, most typically Japanese-American men, experience a higher rate in vascular dementia. Vascular dementia is attributed by a lack of blood supply to the brain. Although Japanese-Americans experience vascular dementia at a higher rate than others, the reasoning behind that is still unexplained.

Alzheimer is an uncommon disorder that most people don’t obtain. Alzheimer is mainly known to affect those that comes of age such as those who are older than 65 years of age, but it is possible that one may inherit Alzheimer’s early on during their adulthood. Alzheimer’s disease was discovered by a clinical psychiatrist and a neuroanatomist whom was very well known as Alois Alzheimer. Alois had claimed that after examining a 50 year old woman’s brain tissue shortly after her death, he had discovered something out of the ordinary that may have caused the 50 year old woman Aguste D’s unusual mental illness. He describes the woman’s condition as to having memory loss, language problems, confusion, aggression, and progressive sleep. While examining

Having all these unique alternative therapies is so important within the dementia community. No one person living with dementia will have the same symptoms as they will not have the same interests in therapies. Individuality is crucial to each person's success in therapy. Some patients may prefer physical hands on therapy such as massage or dancing. Others may prefer animal therapy or music which requires less physicalness. Like myself, some may be very sensitive to certain aromas so I would not prefer that type of therapy. What will work for some won't as much for others. So that is the beauty of having so many unique alternative therapy options. The key is to understand each individual and fit the right therapy with their personality, interests,

These numbers did surprise me especially when I considered the fact that these figures are based on the U.S. population alone. Before this, I knew that Alzheimer's was a problem that affected many people, but I did not realize that it was such an epidemic. If there is not already, there should be an investing partnership and ongoing conversations between key players on the issue. Those would include policymakers, advocates, researchers, patients and caregivers. This way there are more multiple avenues for resources to be pulled from to aid in the Alzheimer's testing and possible cure. In addition, the partnership should also be global. The saying, "two heads are better than one" holds value and I think a global partnership would be essential in order to achieve effective prevention and treatment for Alzheimer's disease as soon as possible. After all, this is not just an American problem, it is a world problem that is affecting millions upon millions. Whatever inefficiencies plague the current system needs to be addressed because I refuse to believe that a cure cannot be found by, at least,

“Horribly tragic, scary, slow, sad, maddening, etc.” These are words some would use when asked what Alzheimer’s/dementia is. This answer is common to those who have watched loved ones suffer from this disease that ultimately lead to their passing. As defined in McGraw Hill Medical Dictionary, Alzheimer’s Disease is a ‘progressive neurologic disease of the brain that causes irreversible loss of neurons and eventual dementia characterized by loss of memory, impairment of judgment, decision making, language use, and awareness of surroundings’(pg. 14). Dementia defined by the same dictionary is the ‘progressive loss cognitive function, usually associated with

“It is estimated that more than five million Americans currently have Alzheimer’s disease; this number is expected to triple by mid-century” (AFA). Since its

Overall, I did pretty well on the quiz. I only missed a few of the questions. Many of these questions seemed like common sense, such as when we age, our senses, such as eyesight and hearing, decline. Also, we tend to lose our physical strength as we age. I was aware that older adults are still very much interested in having sex from taking human sexuality, but I'm sure many others missed that question. That is a very common belief that the elderly are not sexually active. It's relieving to know that the majority of older adults do not suffer from dementia or end up in nursing homes. In fact, a very small percentage of older adults are diagnosed with dementia. This gives me hope for my future! The most surprising answer that I missed was the

With the increasing medical pharmacology and non-pharmacology therapies that are available to individuals through early onset of dementia, early diagnosis is prevalent. Through research it suggest that through early diagnosis that pharmacology and non-pharmacology have maximum effect (Milne, 2010).There have been treatments that have been made availability in consideration cholinesterase inhibitors that have been identified to treat dementia, and also improve memory functioning, and minimize anxiety which enhances an individual’s daily living (Milne, 2010). Also early intervention helps to delay or restrict the need to transition to convalescent centers or care homes.

Currently there are 5.5 million people in the Unites States that are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. It is estimated that in the year 2050 there will be approximately 16 million with this disease. There is much more to know about Alzheimer’s than the statistics. Alzheimer’s Disease affects people at the age 65 and older and is the most common form of dementia. In this disease, the brain cells degenerate and die which is what causes a steady decline in memory and mental function. Society needs to be more aware of the impact Alzheimer’s have on their loved ones starting from the pathology to their financial and emotional state.

People with Dementia suffer with the mental inability to function daily in their life. It is not a specific disease but is a term that includes a range of symptoms that includes the loss of memory and cognitive skills that are severe enough to impair a person’s ability to function in everyday life. Alzheimer’s disease is one type of dementia. (What is Dementia)

I am semi-retired after working over 30 years in the legal field. As the office manager and senior paralegal at my late husband’s law firm, I was exposed to many people facing legal and health problems especially in middle age and toward the end of life. When my husband died, I was thrown into the world of estate law and its companion, eldercare.

Dementia affects more people than the average person actually knows. Around 3 million people suffer from dementia with most cases being affected because of Alzheimer’s disease (McLaren, 2013). In recent studies exercise physical and mental have shown to help prevent and regress the effect of dementia and Alzheimer’s (McLaren, 2013). Although medication helps these two diseases, finding a way to prevent and regress without pharmacology use is the main purpose of this literature review.