Alzheimer's Disease

Research Paper # 50097

Aging
Medical and Health
Psychology > Disorders

Alzheimer's Disease

A look at current hypotheses and effects of Alzheimer's disease.

3,294 words () | 24 sources | APA | 2004 Canada

Paper Summary:

This paper covers a broad range of areas pertaining to Alzheimer's disease (AD), a devastating disease that ravages the brain, robs the sufferer of their identity and eventually causes death. It looks at how AD is not an inevitable part of aging or an acceleration of aging and how it is a disease belonging to a category of diseases known as dementias, which cause a severe deterioration of several mental functions such as judgment, language and memory. It explores different areas from its neurochemistry, anatomy and neurophysiology, to the alarming statistics, the psychology and observable behavioral changes in all stages of this disease. It also discusses causes, current treatments, and treatments under investigation.

From the Paper:

"The first symptoms of AD occur at a microscopic level which affects many areas of the brain and may begin as early as the 20's. Initially, subtle symptoms arise such as forgetfulness and mood change (Jones, 1999). This is due to nerve cell death in the limbic system which undergoes the most severe degenerative changes in AD. The entorhinal cortex is affected earliest and most severely, and shows the clearest evidence of cell loss. This structure is the major relay through which information from the neocortex gets to the hippocampus and back to the neocortex, and it is this degeneration that is thought to cause initial memory loss in AD (Kolb & Whishaw, 1996). Short-term memory is made worse as the hippocampus is gradually ridden with plaques and tangles. Sadly, even long-term memories fade away."