September, 2001     

 

 

Early Warning Signs of Alzheimer's Disease
Beverly Pheiffer, pfeifferb@missouri.edu

Approximately four million Americans have Alzheimer’s, a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain and the most common form of dementia.

· In a National survey, 19 million Americans said they had a family member with Alzheimer’s and 37 million said they knew someone personally with the disease.

· 19% of people 75-85 have Alzheimer’s, and the disease affects nearly half of those 85 or older.

· 14 million Americans will have Alzheimer’s by the middle of the century unless a cure or prevention is found.

· A person with Alzheimer’s will live an average of eight years and as many as 20 years or more from the onset of the symptoms.

· More than 7 of 10 people with Alzheimer’s disease live at home. Almost 75% of home care is provided by family and friends.

Ten warning signs of Alzheimer's

Dr. Bruce Yanker of the Harvard Medical School has said that we’ve learned more about Alzheimer’s disease in the past 15 years than in the previous 85. Despite this recent progress, there is still no foolproof way to diagnose the disease. However, in order to help family members and health care professionals recognize

health care professionals recognize early warning signs, the Alzheimer’s Association has developed a useful checklist of common symptoms of the disease.

· Recent memory loss that affects job skills. It’s normal to occasionally forget assignments, a colleague’s name or a business associate’s telephone number and remember them later. Those with a dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease may forget such things more often and not remember them later.

· Difficulty performing familiar tasks. Busy people can be so distracted from time to time that they may leave the carrots on the stove and only remember to serve them at the end of the meal. People with Alzheimer’s disease could prepare a meal and not only forget to serve one dish but also forget that they made it.

· Problems with language. Everyone has trouble finding the right word sometimes, but a person with Alzheimer’s may forget simple words or use inappropriate words, making his or her sentence incomprehensible.

· Disorientation as to time and place. It’s normal to forget the day of the week or your destination for a moment. But

people with Alzheimer’s can become lost on their own street, not knowing where they are, how they got there or how to get back home.

· Poor or decreased judgment. People can become so immersed in an activity that they temporarily forget the child they’re watching. People with Alzheimer’s disease could entirely forget the child under their care. They may also dress inappropriately, wearing too much on a warm day or very little clothing in cold weather.

· Problems with abstract thinking. Balancing a checkbook may be disconcerting when the task is more complicated than usual. Someone with Alzheimer’s could forget completely what the numbers are and what needs to be done with them.

· Misplacing things. Anyone can temporarily misplace a wallet or set of keys. A person with Alzheimer’s may put things in inappropriate places: an iron in the freezer or a wristwatch in the sugar bowl.

· Changes in mood or behavior. Everyone becomes sad or moody from time to time. Someone with Alzheimer’s can exhibit rapid mood swings: from calm to tears to anger, for no apparent reason.

· Changes in personality. People’s personalities ordinarily change somewhat with age. But a person with Alzheimer’s can change drastically, becoming extremely confused, suspicious or fearful.

· Loss of initiative. It’s normal to tire of housework, business activities or social obligations, but most people regain their initiative. The person with Alzheimer’s disease may become very passive and require cues and prompting to become involved.

Information for this article was provided by the Alzheimer’s Association, 919 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL 60611-1676. For more information about the Association, its many resources and publications, and to receive the free, quarterly newsletter “Advances,” call 1-800-272-3900. You may also e-mail your request and mailing address to infor@lz.org or fill out an online subscription form at www.alz.org.

Source: Work & Family Life Newsletter