Medical, Drugs, Pharmaceuticals And Diseases Information

New research, however, has shown that a part of the brain that processes visual and spatial information may be damaged in people with Alzheimer’s Disease.  Other parts of the brain including the basal forebrain and hippocampus, areas important for memory, are also affected by Alzheimer’s Disease.  Research suggests that the formation of tangles in the brain may be a part of the normal aging process.  Other observed changes in the brain affected by Alzheimer’s Disease include:.  Neuronal degeneration in a part of the brain called the nucleus basalis of Meynert.  Decreased brain levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.  Aprotein named tau has been shown to be involved informing NFTs, but more research is needed to solve the mystery of how and why NFTs form, and how exactly they affect the brain.  The amyloid protein occurs naturally incur brains, but as we age, too much of it (in a form called beta amyloid)accumulates in the brain, forming plaques

Brain imaging methods can also be used to gain information about blood flow and metabolic activity in various parts of the brain.  Brain imaging — Internal images of the brain help detect strokes, tumors or other conditions that may have affected the brain.  Brain images can show changes to structures in the brain that are associated with memory, such as the hippocampus.  Brain imaging techniques offered at Mayo Clinic are: Computed tomography (CT scan) — In this test, an X-ray machine rapidly rotates around the brain while taking a series of thin X-ray beams that produce two-dimensional images.  Expanding Diagnostic Tools because a definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease can only be made by examining the brain after a person dies, AD diagnosis in the living must be made by exclusion.  
  
  
 
As imaging technology becomes more sophisticated and accessible, health professionals can use CAT scans to visualize brain shrinkage.  As you age, some connections in your brain may fail due to tangles or plaques, so it makes sense that the more neural connections you have overall, the more you will be able to compensate for the damaged connections.  Experiments on rats have shown that NGF promoted growth of new synaptic connections in a part of the brain called the hippocampus.  Neurotransmitter Deficiencies in the Brain Neuronsuse neurotransmitters to communicate.  As mentioned previously, acetylcholine levels are lower in Alzheimer’s Disease brains compared to non- Alzheimer’s Disease brains.  Thus, drugs which promote increased levels of acetylcholine in the brain may slow the dementia.  Scientists hypothesize that if your immune system attacks your brain as you age, Alzheimer’s Disease symptoms could result.  However, it is unclear whether this leads to AD, because signs of this type of attack have been seen in non-AD brains.
 
  
 

Program to fund research and educate the public about Alzheimer’s disease.  Alzheimer’s disease affects an estimated 1 in 10 people over age 65.  There is no known way to prevent or cure Alzheimer’s disease, but meantime, a drug that is newly available in the US, can help stop its progression.  Information on this disease including nutrient, lifestyle, and medical options and precautions.  Frequently asked questions on prevention, and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease; Menopause related memory loss.  Information for caregivers of those with Alzheimer’s disease.  Devoted to remembering those who suffer from this debilitating disease, and a place where caregivers can remember the stories that make their loved one special.  A new analysis may help detect the earliest signs of cell damage caused by Alzheimer’s disease.  This ailment is the most common and important cause of senile dementia.  A review of Alzheimer’s disease with particular reference to Pin1 protein.  This ailment impairs the brain’s intellectual functions (memory, orientation, calculation), but at first, largely spares those parts of the brain that control sensation and movement. 

Study Finds Common Anesthetic may induce cell death and generation of disease-related protein.  Toxic protein build up can lead to disease.  Brain Receptor May Play Role in Alzheimer’s Defects in astrocyte formation could contribute to disease.  Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease shows visual images of the degeneration of brain tissue from normal individuals to first, second, and third stage Alzheimers patients.  Besides This ailment, some other types or causes of dementia include: alcoholic dementia, depression, delirium, HIV/AIDS-related dementia, Huntington’s disease (a disorder of the nervous system), inflammatory disease (for example, syphilis), vascular dementia(blood vessel disease in the brain), tumors, and Parkinson’s disease. 

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia.  Delirium can occur in older persons who have short-term illnesses, heart or lung disease, long-term infections, poor nutrition, or hormone disorders.  In Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, problems with memory, judgment, and thought processes make it hard for a person to work and take part in day-to-day family and social life.  Of these individuals, as many as two-thirds have Alzheimer’s disease.  Although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease at this time, it may be possible to relieve some of the symptoms, such as wandering and incontinence.  Talk to your doctor as soon as possible if you think you or a family member may have signs of Alzheimer’s disease.  Research is under way to find better ways to treat Alzheimer’s disease.  The chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease increase with age. 

There are only two definite factors that increase the risk for this ailment:a family history of dementia and Down syndrome.  If Alzheimer’s disease has occurred in your family members, other members are more likely to develop it.  Persons with Down syndrome have a higher chance of getting Alzheimer’s disease.  The classic sign of early Alzheimer’s disease is gradual loss of short-term memory.  Symptoms appear gradually in persons with Alzheimer’s disease but may progress more slowly in some persons than in others.  If you have some of these signs, this does not mean you have Alzheimer’s disease.  Just because you can’t recall where you put the car keys doesn’t mean you have Alzheimer’s disease.  Identifying mild cases of Alzheimer’s diseasecan be very difficult.