Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia: one in 10 people over age 65 (and nearly half of persons over age 85) are affected.
Although many people assume all memory loss is Alzheimer's, the disease actually has relatively specific symptoms, including:
- impaired memory, thinking, and behavior
- confusion
- restlessness
- personality and behavior changes
- impaired judgment
- impaired communication
- inability to follow directions
- language deterioration
- impaired visiospatial skills
- emotional apathy
Experienced physicians like those in the Stanford Neurosciences Center (and their colleagues in the Stanford/VA Alzheimer's Disease Research Center) can determine whether your memory loss is likely due to Alzheimer's disease or another condition. Accurate diagnosis is the key to getting the right treatment.
Treatments
Although there is currently no cure for Alzheimer's disease medicines are available that slow down the rate of memory loss, and can help with other symptoms like depression (which can exacerbate memory loss) and agitation (which can complicate caregiving).