alzheimer’s & related dementia
DESCRIPTION
A brief introduction to Alzheimer's disease and DementiaTRANSCRIPT
ALZHEIMER’S & RELATED DEMENTIA
“While I am still able, I want to articulate and give voice to
what it is like to walk in these shoes and let people know
that given this diagnosis, we are capable of contributing to the world around us. Please
listen to our voices – individually and collectively.”
-Richard (who has early onset Alzheimer’s disease)
DEMENTIA
Dementia is the loss of cognitive functioning—thinking, remembering, and reasoning—to such an extent it interferes with a person’s daily life and activities. It is not a disease itself, but a group of symptoms that often accompanies a disease or condition (www .nia.nih.g ov/sites/d efault/fil es/Unravel ing_final).
EXAMPLES OF DISEASES THAT CAUSE DEMENTIA
Alzheimer’s diseaseVascular dementia Parkinson’s disease with dementia
Pick’s disease Mixed dementiaDementia with Lewy bodiesFrontotemporal dementia
OTHER CAUSES OF DEMENTIA
Medication side effects Depression Vitamin B12 deficiency Chronic alcoholismTumors or Infections of the Brain
ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE,
A FORM OF DEMENTIA Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia, a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer's disease accounts for 50 to 80 percent of dementia cases (www.alz.org).
ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE Progressive brain disorder Damages and eventually destroys
brain cellsLeads to loss of memory, thinking
and other brain functionsNot a part of normal agingStarts slowly and gradually gets
worse Alzheimer's is fatal, and currently,
there is no cure
ALZHEIMER’S BRAIN ABNORMALITIES
Plaques, microscopic clumps of a protein called beta-amyloid peptide
Tangles, twisted microscopic strands of the protein tau (rhymes with "wow")
Loss of connections among brain cells responsible for memory, learning and communication. These connections, or synapses, transmit information from cell to cell.
Inflammation resulting from the brain's effort to fend off the lethal effects of the other changes under way
Eventual death of brain cells and severe tissue shrinkage
PLAQUES & TANGLES
BRAIN CHANGES
THE BRAIN-A FEW HIGHLIGHTS Cerebral Cortex (outer layer)—processes
sensory information from outside world Frontal Lobe (front of brain)—thinking,
organizing, planning and problem solving, memory, attention and movement
Parietal Lobe (behind frontal lobe)–perception and integration of stimuli from senses
Occipital Lobe (back of brain)–vision Temporal Lobe–balance and coordination Amygdala—processing and remembering
strong memories (like fear) Hippocampus—learning and short term
memory.
WHAT WE DO FOR PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND OTHER FORMS OF DEMENTIA
Pharmacological (medication) Interventions (like Namenda & Aricept)
Non-pharmacological interventions
Provide support and education to family members
Advocate