Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's Disease: Introduction

Alzheimer's disease (AD) affects the mental abilities including memory, language, and cognition. Progressively it leads to dementia and death. AD usually arises in late middle age or the elderly but there is a rare familial subtype that occurs earlier. Because AD is so well-known, other causes of dementia or memory loss may be overlooked. Other possible diagnoses include normal aging (if very mild symptoms), emotional problems, fatigue, depression, and certain medical conditions such as thyroid disease, brain tumors, multi-infarct disease, or Huntington's disease. In its early stages, a correct diagnosis of AD can also be overlooked itself and misdiagnosed as other conditions such as depression, dementia, simple forgetfulness, or senility.

Symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease

• Early symptoms
  • Forgetfulness
  • Loss of concentration
  • Forgetting names
• Progressing symptoms
• more symptoms...»

See full list of 34 symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease

Home Diagnostic Testing

Home medical testing related to Alzheimer's Disease:

• Home Andropause Tests
• Prostate Health: Home Testing:
  • Home Prostate Tests
  • Home PSA Antigen Tests
  • Home Testosterone Tests
• Brain & Neurological Disorders: Related Home Testing:
  • ADHD -- Home Tests
  • Drug Screening Kits
• more tests...»

Alzheimer's Disease: Complications

Review possible medical complications related to Alzheimer's Disease:

• Memory loss
• Sleeplessness
• Agitation
• Wandering (see Disorganization)
• Anxiety (type of Neurosis)
• more complications...»

Medical Textbooks Online about Alzheimer's Disease

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Alzheimer's Disease

• Urine tests
• Blood tests
• Neuropsychological tests
• Memory tests
• Cognitive tests
• more tests...»

See full list of 9 diagnostic tests for Alzheimer's Disease

Wrongly Diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease?

• Misdiagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease
• Failure to diagnose Alzheimer's Disease
• Hidden causes of Alzheimer's Disease (possibly wrongly diagnosed)
• Undiagnosed: Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's Disease: Self Assessment Tools

• Stroke -- Self Assessment Tools
• more tools...»

Alzheimer's Disease: Medical Mistakes

• Alzheimer's Disease -- Health Mistakes
• more mistakes...»

Alzheimer's Disease: Marketplace Products, Discounts & Offers

Products, offers and promotion categories available for Alzheimer's Disease:

• Senior Health
• Memory Care
• Men's Health
• Stroke
• Brain
• more product offers...»

Alzheimer's Disease: Undiagnosed Conditions

Commonly undiagnosed diseases in related medical categories:

• Brain & Neurological Disorders: Undiagnosed:
  • Adult ADHD -- Undiagnosed - ADHD can be undiagnosed in adults.
  • ADHD -- Undiagnosed
  • Alzheimer Disease -- Undiagnosed
  • Migraine -- Undiagnosed
  • Concentration Disorders -- Undiagnosed
  • Stroke -- Undiagnosed
  • Bipolar Disorder -- Undiagnosed
  • Schizophrenia -- Undiagnosed
  • Epilepsy -- Undiagnosed
• more undiagnosed conditions...»

Misdiagnosis and Alzheimer's Disease

Underactive thryoid may be misdiagnosed as depression: Hypothyroidism, or underactive thyroid, is an endocrine gland disorder that is more common in women. It can mimic many diseases, including depression. The...read more »

Undiagnosed stroke leads to misdiagnosed aphasia: BBC News UK reported on a man who had been institutionalized and treated for mental illness because he suffered from sudden inability to speak. This was initially misdiagnosed as a "nervous...read more »

Alzheimer's disease over-diagnosed: The well-known disease of Alzheimer's disease is often over-diagnosed. Patients tend to assume that any...read more »

Dementia may be a drug interaction: A common scenario in aged care is for a patient to show mental decline to dementia. Whereas this can, of course, occur due to various medical...read more »

Tremor need not be Parkinson's disease: There is the tendency to believe that any tremor symptom, or shakiness, means Parkinson's disease. The reality is that there are various possibilities, such as benign...read more »

Mild traumatic brain injury often remains undiagnosed: Although the symptoms of severe brain injury are hard to miss, it is less clear for milder injuries, or even those causing a mild concussion diagnosis. The condition goes by the...read more »

MTBI misdiagnosed as balance problem: When a person has symptoms such as vertigo or dizziness, a diagnosis of brain injury may go overlooked. This is particularly true of mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), for which the...read more »

Rare diseases misdiagnosed as Parkinson's disease: A rare genetic disorder is often misdiagnosed as Parkinson's disease for men in their 50's. The disease Fragile X disorder can show only mild...read more »

Brain pressure condition often misdiagnosed as dementia: A condition that results from an excessive pressure of CSF within the brain is often...read more »

Post-concussive brain injury often misdiagnosed: A study found that soldiers who had suffered a concussive injury in battle often were misdiagnosed on their return. A variety of symptoms can occur in post-concussion syndrome and these were...read more »

Children with migraine often misdiagnosed: A migraine often fails to be correctly diagnosed in pediatric patients. These patients are not the typical migraine sufferers, but migraines can also occur in children. See ...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's Disease: Research Doctors & Specialists

Research related physicians and medical specialists:

• Neurology (Brain/CNS Specialists):
  • Neurology (Brain/CNS Specialists)
  • Pediatric Neurology (Child Brain Specialist)
  • Pediatric Neurosurgery (Child Neurosurgeon)
  • Clinical Neurophysiology
  • Neurodevelopment Disabilities
  • Neurosurgery (Brain Surgery)
  • Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine (Nerve/Muscle/Bone Specialists)
  • Neuroradiology
  • Vascular Neurology
  • Neuropathology
  • Otology / Neurotology (Ear/Hearing Specialists)
• Stroke & Vascular Specialists:
  • Vascular Neurology (Brain Blood Vessels)
  • Vascular & Interventional Radiology
  • Vascular Surgery (Blood Vessel Surgeon)
  • Neuropathology (Brain Diagnostics)
• Senior Health Specialists (Geriatrics):
  • Geriatric Medicine (Senior Health Specialist)
  • Geriatric Psychiatry (Senior Mental Health)
• more specialists...»

Other doctor, physician and specialist research services:

• Rate Your Doctor Online
• Research Your Doctor Online
• Review Patient Surveys About Your Doctor
• Research local specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.

Hospitals & Clinics: Alzheimer's Disease

Research quality ratings and patient safety measures for medical facilities in specialties related to Alzheimer's Disease:

• Senior Health -- Hospital Quality Ratings
• Nursing Homes & Aged Care Facilities -- Quality Ratings
• more hospital ratings...»

Hospital & Clinic quality ratings » »

Choosing the Best Hospital: More general information, not necessarily in relation to Alzheimer's Disease, on hospital performance and surgical care quality:

• 50 Best Hospitals Report
• Outstanding Patient Experinece Award Winning Hospitals
• Women's Health Best Hospitals
• Patient Safety
• Hospital Quality and Clinical Excellence Study (2009)

Alzheimer's Disease: Rare Types

Rare types of diseases and disorders in related medical categories:

• Brain & Neurological Disorders: Rare Types:
  • Adult ADHD -- Rare Types
  • ADHD -- Rare Types
  • Alzheimer Disease -- Rare Types
  • Migraine -- Rare Types
  • Concentration Disorders -- Rare Types
  • Stroke -- Rare Types
  • Bipolar Disorder -- Rare Types
  • Schizophrenia -- Rare Types
  • Epilepsy -- Rare Types
• more rare diseases...»

Causes of Alzheimer's Disease

Read more about causes of Alzheimer's Disease.

More information about causes of Alzheimer's Disease:

• Medications, drugs, or substances causing Alzheimer's Disease (16 listings)
• Alzheimer's Disease as a complication caused by other conditions
• Alzheimer's Disease as a symptom
• Medical news summaries relating to Causes of Alzheimer's Disease

Treatments for Alzheimer's Disease

• Mental stimulation
• Tacrine (THA, Cognex)
• Aricept (donepezil) - reversible acetylcholinesterase inhibitors
• Exelon (rivastigmine) - reversible acetylcholinesterase inhibitors
• Supportive care
• more treatments...»

See full list of 6 treatments for Alzheimer's Disease

News Archives for Alzheimer's Disease

Medical news articles related to Alzheimer's Disease include:

• Irregular Heartbeat Tied to Alzheimer's Disease
• Alzheimer's and Even Mild Dementia Hasten Death
• Plaques, Tangles in Brain Don't Always Lead to Alzheimer's
• Early Alzheimer's Hinders Brain's Effort to Sort Information
• Protein-Folding Problem May Help Spur Alzheimer's
• Alzheimer's Drug May Someday Help Head Trauma Victims
• If Parents Had Alzheimer's, Aging May Come Early
• more health news...»

Source: HealthDay News

Evidence Based Medicine Research for Alzheimer's Disease

Medical research articles related to Alzheimer's Disease include:

• Rivastigmine for Alzheimer's disease
• Safety and efficacy of galantamine (Reminyl) in severe Alzheimer`s disease (the SERAD study): a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial
• Antipsychotics increase mortality in patients with Alzheimer?s disease, Further evidence to support individualised antipsychotic drug treatment for schizophrenia, Antiepileptic product information to be updated, All non-analgesics similarly effective for
• Can counseling and support reduce burden and depressive symptoms in caregivers of people with Alzheimer`s disease during the transition to institutionalization?
• Effect of dimebon on cognition, activities of daily living, behaviour, and global function in patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.
• Guideline for Alzheimer's disease management.
• more research...»

Click here to find more evidence-based articles on the TRIP Database

Videos for Alzheimer's Disease

Patient Surveys for Alzheimer's Disease

• Patient Profile Survey
  Take Survey  View Results
• Survey about the symptoms of your Alzheimer's Disease
  Take Survey  View Results

Prognosis for Alzheimer's Disease

Prognosis for Alzheimer's Disease: Poor. Progressive deterioration from 5-20 years.

More about prognosis of Alzheimer's Disease

Reseach about Alzheimer's Disease

Visit our research pages for current research about Alzheimer's Disease treatments.

Clinical Trials for Alzheimer's Disease

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Alzheimer's Disease include:

• Alzheimer's Disease Genetics Study - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• A Comparison of Two Standard Therapies in the Management of Dementia With Agitation - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - risperidone,quetiapine,olanzapine,divalproex
• Evaluation of Age- and Alzheimer's Disease-Related Memory Disorder - This study is no longer recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Brain Imaging in Alzheimer's Disease - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - [123] 5-I-A-85380
• Brain Study of Patients With Frontal Lobe Dementia and Parkinsonian Disorders - This study is currently recruiting patients (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - 18 FDG
• more trials...»

See full list of 254 Clinical Trials for Alzheimer's Disease

Statistics for Alzheimer's Disease

• Medical statistics for Alzheimer's Disease
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Alzheimer's Disease
• Death and Mortality statistics for Alzheimer's Disease
• Society statistics for Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's Disease: Broader Related Topics

• Chronic Illness
• Dementia
• Dementia
• Brain conditions
• more types...»

Types of Alzheimer's Disease

Types of Alzheimer's Disease

• Familial Alzheimer's disease - an early-onset inherited genetic form.
• more types...»

Read more about Types of Alzheimer's Disease

Curable Types of Alzheimer's Disease

Possibly curable types of Alzheimer's Disease include:

• Sporadic Alzheimer's disease
• more types...»

Rare Types of Alzheimer's Disease:

Rare types of Alzheimer's Disease include:

• Right parietal lobe syndrome related Alzheimer's disease
• Spastic paraparesis related alzheimer's disease
• Familial forms of Alzheimer's disease
• Alzheimer disease, familial, 1
• Alzheimer disease 2, late-onset
• more types...»

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User Interactive Forums

Read about other experiences, ask a question about Alzheimer's Disease, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:

• I can not get a diagnosis. Please help.
• Tell us your medical story.
• Share your misdiagnosis story.
• What is the best treatment for this?
• See all the forums.

Article Excerpts about Alzheimer's Disease

NINDS Alzheimer's Disease Information Page: NINDS (Excerpt)

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease characterized by memory loss, language deterioration, impaired visuospatial skills, poor judgment, indifferent attitude, but preserved motor function. (Source: excerpt from NINDS Alzheimer's Disease Information Page: NINDS)

Alzheimer's Disease: NWHIC (Excerpt)

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in older people. A dementia is a medical condition that disrupts the way the brain works. AD affects the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. Every day, scientists learn more about AD, but right now the cause or causes of the disease are still unknown, and there is no known cure. An estimated 4 million people in the U.S. suffer from AD. (Source: excerpt from Alzheimer's Disease: NWHIC)

Clinical Trials Alzheimer''s Disease and Related Disorders: NIMH (Excerpt)

ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE (AD) is an age-related and irreversible brain disorder that occurs gradually and results in memory loss, behavior and personality changes, and a decline in thinking abilities. These losses are related to the breakdown of the connections between nerve cells in the brain and the eventual death of many of these cells. (Source: excerpt from Clinical Trials Alzheimer''s Disease and Related Disorders: NIMH)

Definitions of Alzheimer's Disease:

A degenerative disease of the BRAIN characterized by the insidious onset of DEMENTIA. Impairment of MEMORY, judgment, attention span, and problem solving skills are followed by severe APRAXIAS and a global loss of cognitive abilities. The condition primarily occurs after age 60, and is marked pathologically by severe cortical atrophy and the triad of SENILE PLAQUES; NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES; and NEUROPIL THREADS. (From Adams et al., Principles of Neurology, 6th ed, pp1049-57) - (Source - Diseases Database)

A progressive form of presenile dementia that is similar to senile dementia except that it usually starts in the 40s or 50s; first symptoms are impaired memory which is followed by impaired thought and speech and finally complete helplessness - (Source - WordNet 2.1)