Focus: The Brain

As we grow older, so does our brain. Normally an elderly person would experience an occasional difficulty recalling things and slowed thinking as they aged. Alzheimer's disease causes abnormal effects of aging on the brain. Severe memory loss, confusion and physical changes lead to the conclusion that brain cells are dying.

The progressive stages of Alzheimer's include:
Stage 1: no impairment- normal function with no memory problems evident
Stage 2: very mild cognitive decline- patient feels as if they are sometimes forgetting small everyday things
Stage 3: mild cognitive decline- can be diagnosed in some patients, family and peers begin to notice changes
Stage 4: moderate cognitive decline- reduced memory of personal history and ability to accomplish complex physical and mental tasks, decreased awareness of recent occasions/events
Stage 5: moderately severe cognitive decline- confusion increases and major gaps in memory become evident
Stage 6: severe cognitive decline-forget names of familiar faces, imperfect memory of personal history, may require assistance with eating and using the restroom, personality changes, tend to wander or become lost
Stage 7: very severe cognitive decline- patient loses the ability to respond to their environment, speech problems, loss of ability to walk/sit, eat/swallow, or use the restroom without assistance, muscle reflexes are abnormal
(The duration of the entire disease process can range from 3 to 20 years.)
Parts of the brain function and interact through the networking of nerve cells. Each section serves a particular purpose, and as the progession of Alzheimer's disease spreads throughout the brain it effects several of its functions.
Plaques and tangles are abnormal structures found in the brain of an individual with Alzheimer's disease. These structures are responsible for destroying and damaging nerve cells. Plaques build up between the cells and tangles are twisted fibers of protien that grow inside dying cells. An Alzheimer's patient devlopes many more of these structures than normal as they age, therefore causing the disease to spread throughout thier brain (see video).**

**information found at www.alz.org