A new government-funded study published in the online journal Neurology concluded the number of people in the U.S. with Alzheimer's Disease could almost triple by 2050 without some form of prevention or cure. In this week鈥檚 Vital Signs, Dr. Bassem Elsawy, a geriatric specialist at Methodist Charlton Medical Center, discusses the reasons why and whether society's prepared for the increase.
What Is Alzheimer's Disease?
Dementia is not a disease itself. It's a group of symptoms that are caused by various diseases or conditions. Read how dementia develops, what causes it, and which conditions are treatable.
People with dementia who "sundown" experience periods of increased confusion and agitation as the sun goes down -- and sometimes through the night.
The most common form of dementia among older people is Alzheimer鈥檚 disease. About 4.5 million Americans suffer from this condition, which usually begins after age 60.
Mental decline in Alzheimer鈥檚 disease shows up first as loss of memory function. Next to be affected are emotions and inhibitions. Brain lesions, called amyloid plaques and tangles, accumulate, causing a declining ability to cope with everyday life as brain cells die.
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