Dementia is a disorder which causes the brain cells to deteriorate therefor causes a decline in several symptoms and affects a person’s mentality, capacity and how they go about their everyday life.
According to Gavett and Stern (2012), instead of being a continuous variable, dementia epitomizes the ultimate common clinical pathway for a number of advanced (e.g., chronic traumatic encephalopathy, AD, frontotemporal lobar degeneration) and revocable (e.g., vitamin B12 deficiency, major depression, hypothyroidism) medical conditions. It is believed that the construct of dementia is best hypothesized as continually fluctuating however, evidence is showing dementia is divergent and definite. The simple fact of the presence of dementia does not give insight into its cause. From a developmental perspective of aging, knowing whether the inactive structure of dementia is unqualified or continuous does not appear to provide
Just imagine waking up one morning and not knowing or remembering anything you did yesterday or the past years of your life? Well that’s what people who have dementia go through. They cannot remember who their kids are or anyone around them.
Alzheimer's is described as a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Victims lose the whole essence of who they are and slowly deteriorate while remaining powerless. Tragically more than 5.3 million people fall victim to Alzheimer's disease and it is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States (alz.org). Yet, it still cannot be cured, slowed, or prevented. The disease is often seen as a result of old age and not taken seriously. Typically, by the time the victim is diagnosed, the disease has already progressed beyond return. Learning about this incurable disease, that is too often brushed aside, is extremely important.
In this paper, I have chosen my own thesis topic ‘Dementia’ as a common health problems among elderly people to discuss different diverging aspects of dementia from different theoretical perspectives. In my thesis, I have planned to explore health care providers’ perspectives on dementia care in elderly homes in Nepal. When we talk about health and illness related to physical or mental health, we are more concerned about physiological and pathological process of human body. Biomedical model, which is most commonly used in health profession to understand the health, illness and disease through pathological processes,helps in undertaking therapeutic approach. According to WHO, dementia is a syndrome in which there is deterioration
My first encounter with Alzheimer’s was when I was 13 years old and I watched my 70-year-old grandfather fight one of his sons. I didn’t understand why they were fighting, and it terrified me to see it happening. Once my other uncles broke up the fight and everything seemed to have begun to calm down, I asked my grandfather what was wrong. His response was one that I was not prepared for. He told me that he didn’t know why that man was in his house and talking to him like a child. I asked him what man and he pointed at my uncle. I told him that was his son and he said that was not his son and proceeded to watch TV as if nothing had happened. I had such a hard time trying to figure out what had just happened and why my grandfather said that. My uncles later told me that my grandfather was losing his memory.
People’s working memory slowly declines over time and can greatly be seen when the memory involves speed processing, episodic, long-term memory. But by exercising out brains we can keep our memory, at least some parts from declining as rapidly or till later in life. Alzheimer’s Disease begins be looking like someone is just get old and are forgetting where things are. I personally sometime forget where I park my car on campus some days especially, if I don’t park in my usual spot it takes me a few second to have to think of where I parked that day. The people with Alzheimer’s starts forgetting words and remembering the new things, like names. One of my patients for some reason always though my name was Peach, I would correct him every day and I even wore a name tag, but he for some reason could never remember my name or it was Peach instead of Paige. This sometime happens with normal memory people can create those long term
As the body ages the brain follows and can start to loose normal functioning. This may be in the form of affecting memory, thinking, and social abilities. When these impairments become severe enough to interfere with daily functioning they are diagnosable as a form of dementia. The Center of Disease Control defines dementia as “an umbrella term for a group of cognitive disorders typically characterized by memory impairment, as well as marked difficulty in the domains of language, motor activity, object recognition, and disturbance of executive function” [6]. The umbrella term dementia encases many variations of the above definition. The most prevalent and serious of the progressive dementia brain disorders is Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s
In this stage, people may have very mild memory inconsistencies. People might struggle to resolve and complete challenging problems and have difficulty with timing. It is possible that they may be slipping at work or when involved in social activities. However, at this stage, people can still manage to take care of themselves without any
Alzheimer’s disease is a neurocognitive disorder which currently affects roughly 40 million people worldwide. Nevertheless, those statistics are rising due to a combined effect of the baby boomer generation and advanced medical treatment leading to longer life spans (Chumakov, et al., 2015). Diagnostic criteria for Alzheimer’s disease is two-fold. First, the criteria must be met for a Mild Neurocognitive Disorder as detailed in the Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5.In order to diagnose mild or major neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer’s disease the above criteria must be met as specified in the DSM-5. Additionally, a neurological examination should be performed, if at all possible, to exclude other causes of possible age related dementia
The person becomes aware that she is not thinking and remembering as she did in the past. At this stage, she is pretty good at covering up gaps and lapses in memory. Family members and others may see a troubling lapse once in a while but will likely attribute it to the person having a bad day or the normal memory changes that occur with aging. Tools such as making notes, using a written calendar and keeping lists can help her stay on track.
The world is a steadily growing place with many illnesses that affect our society. One big disease that is on the rise now is Dementia. Dementia is a growing illness that effects the geriatric society. An illness that can’t be treated but can be somewhat controlled is putting a heavy burden on caregivers. Caregivers can be paid caregivers, family or even friends. Being a caregiver is not an easy task, but many adults have no choice but to take on this role. “Caregiving has four main effects which are emotional strain, physical demands, income and uninterrupted schedules.”(Page 135) Often times while being a caregiver for someone, your needs and health is often overlooked. Sleep patterns is one of the main disturbances that caregivers face. Sleep disturbance not only takes away from ones sleep but it affects their health, their emotions, and their ability to be the best caregiver for the person sick.
Mellow Cognitive Impairment (MCI) has been characterized as a transitional state between ordinary maturing and dementia; patients with MCI have a memory loss more prominent than anticipated for patients with their age and academic level who have a complete day by day living exercises however not dementia. The predominance of MCI in elderly individuals ranges from 3% to 20%.The rates of change in dementia are contingent upon the subsequent period and, applied definition: 12% every year for 4 years, 23% to 47% crosswise over 2.6 years,40% crosswise over 2 years, 53% crosswise over 3 years,34% to 100% crosswise over 4 to 5 years, and 100% crosswise over 9.5 years.7 Currently, there is open discussion on whether MCI is an autonomous
“Aging is a biological process, experienced by mankind in all times. However, concern for aging of population is a relatively new phenomenon, which has a raised due to significantly large increase in the number and proportions of aged persons in the society”
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a cognitive deficit of increasing incidence most common among people from the age of 65 onward; the older the patient, the worst the cognitive functioning is. In this literature review we will see more details about the characteristics of these disease (causes, diagnosis techniques, etc.). We know that Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) does not always mean that AD will develop later on, but it can be used as a way of predicting, or at least trying to predict, if AD will eventually appear. There are neuroimaging techniques that can help in our task to diagnose AD and describe its causes.