Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disease and the most common form of dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and, eventually, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks.
Dementia
Dementia describes a collection of symptoms that are caused by disorders affecting the brain. It is not one specific disease. Dementia has physical, and economic impacts, not only for people living with dementia, but also for their carers, families and society at large.
Alzheimer's causes
The causes probably include a combination of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors.
Alzheimer's stages
The signs and symptoms linked to Alzheimer's disease can be understood in three stages.
Alzheimer's symptom
Dementia affects each person in a different way, depending upon the underlying causes etc.
Alzheimer's disease affects thinking, behaviour and the ability to perform everyday tasks.
While some risk factors — age, family history and heredity — can’t be changed, emerging evidence suggests there may be other factors we can influence.
Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and, eventually, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks. In most people with Alzheimer’s, symptoms first appear later in life.
Routine check-ups
Diagnosis
Treatment and care
Prevention
Families and carers
Living wih dementia
Clinical trials
Key facts
Alzheimer's disease history
In November 1906, clinical psychiatrist, Alois Alzheimer presented his landmark discovery of ‘an unusual disease of the human cortex’ at the 37th Meeting of South-West German Psychiatrists in Tubingen. During his presentation, he described a 51-year-old woman, Auguste Deter, whose case he had followed from admission until her death. Deter had been admitted to hospital for paranoia, sleep and memory disturbance, aggression, and confusion. Alzheimer was particularly fascinated by distinctive plaques and neurofibrillary tangles which he discovered in her brain. Alzheimer supported Deter throughout her stay in hospital, going the extra mile to ensure she could stay there as long as possible.
Unfortunately, when he presented these findings to his peers, the response was disappointing. But his supervisor, Emil Kraepelin, recognised the value of Alzheimer’s discovery. Despite the unenthusiastic response from fellow scientists, Kraepelin named this particular collection of symptoms ‘Alzheimer’s disease’ and described them as such in the 3rd edition of his text ‘Psychiatrie’ in 1910.