Alzheimer's Disease - Term Paper Example

The most prevalent form of Dementia is the Alzheimer’s disease. The progress of this disease is very slow, even the person developing this brain malfunction may not notice it in the beginning. Initially, the part of the brain that has control over the memory and language is affected. This results in the loss of memory, as the person suffering from such disease is not able to recall the most recent happenings and names of the acquaintances. The disease is more evident among the older human beings.

Another memory loss function, called ‘mild cognitive impairment’ may also develop into the Alzheimer’s disease. As this disease begins, usually, at the age of 60, people start forgetting even the basic daily activities like the way a toothbrush is used. Later stages of this disease make the patients loose their reasoning power, as they start wandering, without any purpose. People with family history of this disease are at higher risk to contact it, particularly when they get older. (Alzheimer’s disease) Symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease Early signs of this disease include forgetting about the things, as they are not placed by the patient at their usual place.

For example, a wallet is placed in the washbasin. Forgetting names of the friends and associates is the first symptom of this disease. The other symptoms include putting on the odd dresses, not suitable for the current climate, like going out in shorts on a snowstorm day. The patients of this disease experience mood swings from crying like a child to violent and aggressive behavior. They also loose the sense of direction, as these patients are not able to find way, back to home, if such patients wander outside their house.

(Robinson et al) Heredity can be major cause of Alzheimer’s disease Medical research has provided evidence of inheriting genes from chromosomes of the parents, which is responsible for contacting Alzheimer’s disease, at the later stage in the life of such offspring. Further studies have shown that few particular genes in chromosome 1, 14 and 21, when passed from parent to child can have direct relation to the development of this disease, in the mature age. (Glass) The other factors that are responsible for development of this disease include high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension, coronary artery disease and higher levels of blood cholesterol.

Education also plays an important part in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, as uneducated people have been found to be more prone to contacting this disease. However, it is not certain that all patients with such symptoms can attract Alzheimer’s disease, at any stage in their life. (Crystal 2) Cure for Alzheimer’s disease The medication available to treat this disease aims at replacing the neurotransmitters in the brain, which have lost their function, due to the death of certain brain cells.

The non-medication forms of treatment include cognitive training, behavioral treatment. The aim is to make the patients more independent, so that they can re-orient themselves in a better manner. However, there is no curable treatment for this disease, which can guarantee the patients to get rid of the same. Medical research and lab experiments are being conducted to find the ways that can stop the fragmentation of the concerned protein elements, which play havoc for the relevant brain cells.

These experiments also include stopping the disintegration of