The Alzheimer's Foundation of America defines Alzheimer's disease as a disorder that targets the neurons of the brain, hence resulting into memory loss and cognitive and behavioral changes. It is both progressive and degenerative. It is said to be the most common cause of dementia. Alzheimer's disease is characterized by abnormal lesions and plaques found in the brain. It usually affects people over the age of 65, although studies have shown that younger people can also develop this condition, albeit rarely. Alzheimer's disease has several effects.
Cognitive Effects
According to the Alzheimer's Foundation of America, cognitive changes consist of four A's: amnesia, aphasia, apraxia, and agnosia. Amnesia is simply the loss of memory or the inability to remember things. This also counts as one of the early signs of Alzheimer's disease, as stated by the Alzheimer's Association. Short-term memory is affected first before the long-term memory. Misplacing things is a classic sign that happens during the early diagnostic stage of Alzheimer's. Aphasia is defined by the Alzheimer's Foundation of America as the inability to communicate effectively, in the sense that the patient may not be able to speak or write anymore, or he has trouble understanding spoken or written words. Patients with Alzheimer's disease can also fail to perform activities of daily living that they used to do before, and this condition is called apraxia. In apraxia, even the things that patients used to perform regularly are forgotten. Finally, agnosia is the lack of ability to interpret signals coming from the five senses.
Behavorial Effects
MayoClinic.com enumerates the possible behavioral changes that a person with Alzheimer's disease might exhibit. These include mood swings, stubbornness, distrust in other people, aggressiveness, anxiety, and depression. Withdrawal from social activities is also another classic warning sign of Alzheimer's disease as reported by the Alzheimer's Association. According to HelpGuide.org, the behavioral effects can also stem out from the frustration that patients feel due to their current conditions especially if they are experiencing psychiatric effects like hallucinations and delusions.
Psychiatric Effects
Psychiatric changes do not come until the disease has already taken its course. These changes are not present during the early stages of the disease, usually coming during the middle stage as reported by the Alzheimer's Foundation of America. A person with Alzheimer's disease may develop delusions and hallucinations. The former is defined as a false fixed belief, while the latter is a distortion of a person's perception of reality.
