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Articles » Disease-&-Illness >> View Article
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| Alzheimer's Disease; Is it preventable? |
By:
Kevin Allen |
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Dementia is now a major problem amongst retired people especially the type known as Alzheimer's disease; currently the most common form of dementia among older people.
Alzheimer's disease gradually causes deterioration in the memory and is currently affecting one in ten of people aged 65 and over; the diagnosis of the disorder has managed to reach an accuracy of up to ninety four percent.
Alois Alzheimer a German physician first discovered the disease back in 1906 but it has only really been in the world's focus for just over 30 years; despite a great deal of scientific investigation, not that much is known about this awful disorder.
Getting older is the main risk surrounding Alzheimer's according to research. Part of the problem in the early stages of Alzheimer's is the patient's reluctance to admit to anyone or themselves that they are experiencing problems; this often cause delays in the diagnosis.
As far as treatment is concerned, Alzheimer's disease is treated in the same manner as other types of dementia. Despite the studies, there is no permanent treatment for the condition but there are a number of drugs which can help with the condition.
At the moment, three drugs are used routinely to treat sufferers of Alzheimer's, all of which have been approved by the FDA - Donepezil, Tacrine, and Rivastigmine; they can improve the mental faculties of patients with this condition by up to 26 weeks.
A new drug, Memantine is helping to slow down the mental decline during the later phases and is similar to the anti-influenza treatment Amantadine; patients with mild to severe Alzheimer's who are already receiving Donepezil are now given Memantine as an alternative.
The side effects of using Memantine are low, and it's the first drug shown to have an effect on the symptoms of moderate to severe cases; as 80 percent of the drug is passed in urine unchanged there is very little left to cause any harm.
Alzheimer's disease is thought to be one of the largest public health problems, primarily due to an increase in the life expectancy of people in the world; it is a major cause of death in America. The economic cost of treating and providing care for those with this type of aging disease another issue to be addressed; there is already 40 billion American dollars spent every year on treatment and this amount is set to rise.
According to the National Institute on Aging, nearly half of its annual budget is spent on research into this awful condition; they are now testing over three hundred compounds at any one time.
One of the few factors that you can change to alter your risk of developing dementia is to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Although not full proven yet, researchers studying Alzheimer's patients have noticed that those who stay healthy and cheerful have slowed down the rate of decline.
At the moment, the disease is still primarily affecting the aged; unfortunately it has started to claim the occasional younger victim.
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| My Mother died from this disease and she didn't have to.
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