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Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that affects persons thinking, memory, and intellect. It also compromises a person’s social behavior and occupational functioning. This disease is the most common form of dementia and is found mainly in people over the age of sixty five. The Alzheimer’s patient will get worse and worse until the end. It may even reduce their life span.
The disease was first recorded by an Alois Alzheimer in early 1900’s. Alois Alzheimer was a well recognized German physician who specialized in neuropathology and histopathology. The patient was a woman names Auguste Deter, who at the age of fifty five, died leaving her physicians including Alzheimer baffled. She had suffered from language, memory and behavior problems that continued to get worse until the end. When she passed away, Alzheimer decided to study her brain to see if he could figure out the causes of her symptoms. He noticed two differences that have come to identify Alzheimer’s disease.
The first of these is called Neurofibrillary tangles. They are abnormal formations in the cytoplasm of the nerve cell. They are found in the cerebral cortex of the brain mainly in the temporal lobe structures like the amygdale or the hippocampus. They can be seen using eosin or hematoxylin stain. They can also be seen using methods such as silver impregnation techniques, thioflavine, a fluorescent dye, or Congo red.
The second thing Alzheimer took note of was the neuritic plaques. The neuritis plaques are made of a protein called amyloid, normally found in the body. In a person with Alzheimer’s, large sediments of the protein accumulate between the nerve cells. These plaques were later found to be comprised of deposits of aluminum silicate as well as the amyloid protein.
Since Alzheimer’s discoveries, other researchers have discovered that there are links between the disease and genetics and the disease can be passed down through the generations of a family.
There is still plenty that needs to be understood about Alzheimer’s before concrete conclusions can been drawn. Currently, the emphasis in Alzheimer’s with regards to research is on prevention
There are currently medications on the market to treat Alzheimer’s disease. The most commonly used are Aricept and Namenda. They are often both prescribed at the same time. These drugs are not known to reverse the disease, just to slow the progression of it and allow the patient to be able to function independently longer than otherwise able to do. At present time, there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s disease.
Gavin Sanderson is an established freelance writer. You can find more of his writing at bodybuildingzine.com and help-alzheimers.com. |
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