Alzheimer's disease, or dementia type Alzheimer's, is a brain disorder of chronic and progressive deterioration that is accompanied by profound effects on the ability to remember, learn and reason. We can say that in one of the most feared disorders of our time due to the consequences of great deterioration that it produces in the affected person.
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The main symptoms that appear are the progressive loss of mental abilities and functioning, memory loss, confusion and hallucinations. The onset of evil can be slow, the closest relatives often notice that the individual has some forgetfulness in their daily chores.
The WHO defines Alzheimer's disease as a primary degenerative brain disease, of unknown etiology, presenting characteristic neuropathological and neurochemical symptoms. The disorder usually begins insidiously and slowly and progressively evolves over a period of years. The evolution is usually long (between eight and ten years), although sometimes it is two or three years.
Later and gradually, higher cognitive functions deteriorate, with loss of ability to read, write, calculate and even communicate normally. Personality changes can also be noticeable. In the terminal phases, disorders of motor functions arise, such as gait, and they end up not being able to move. They are sick that physically they do not have to be sick, so their life expectancy can be long.
The three phases of Alzheimer's
Relatives end up being the "other victims" of this terrible disease, as they have to be aware of their constant carelessness, they also suffer restlessness, confusion, falls, anger attacks and urinary incontinence, among other disorders. All of them are very difficult aspects to bear for long periods of time.
Studies have shown that a characteristic macroscopic sign is the appearance of senile plaques (round or oval structures of dendrites and destroyed synapses, within a central amyloid nucleus) in the brain. There is also a notable loss of neurons in the cerebral cortex. Neuronal death is accompanied by a corresponding decrease in cerebral blood flow. The researchers note that there is a progressive decrease in the activity of the enzyme acetylcholine transferase in brain tissue. This enzyme is crucial as a neurotransmitter involved in learning and memory.
Alzheimer's disease usually manifests itself in advanced ages (between 65 and 70 years old), but in some cases it can appear earlier, between thirty and fifty years. In these cases it is very possible that there is a family history of dementia, and the degenerative course of the disease is much faster. It is being speculated that this would be a variant of the disease and that its causes could be more in a genetic mutation. When the onset of the disease is later, the course tends to be slower and is characterized by a more global deterioration of higher cortical functions.
There is currently no cure for the disease, so treatment is only palliative. As pharmacological treatment there are drugs that improve the performance of memory and the entire cognitive system.
Lately, a protein, beta-amyloid, has been found that can also cause neuron death and studies are being carried out to find a drug that blocks its action.
It is believed that in the future the therapies will consist of the combination of several types of medication.
Other complementary care that must be taken into account in this disease are, for example, talking with the affected person always in a calm and pleasant way so as not to irritate them, providing them with a calm environment, eliminating as much as possible the risks that they may hurt themselves (the kitchen fire, sharp objects such as scissors or needles, etc.), maintain a regular life program, use memory aids such as lists, notes, labels on objects, guide him periodically in time and place, monitor possible falls bed, food temperature, and help maintain cognitive abilities with specialized booster programs for this type of dementia.
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