Alzheimer s Disease My Grandma s Killer - 1354 Words

Alzheimer’s Disease: My Grandma’s Killer Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is characterized by gradual cognitive decline that beings with the inability to create recent memories or thoughts, which then proceeds to effect on all intellectual functions (Mayeux Stern, 2012). AD affects an estimated 5.5 million people in the United States, and 24 million people worldwide (Mayeux Stern, 2012). The incidence of Alzheimer’s disease is rising in line with the aging population, therefore; AD is most common in older patients around the ages of 60-85 (Mayeux Stern, 2012). Alzheimer’s Disease is the sixth most common cause of death (Latest Alzheimer s Facts and Figures, 2015). Therefore, in the United States, one individual will develop the disease in every 67 seconds (Latest Alzheimer s Facts and Figures, 2015). Pathology Alzheimer’s Disease is indicated by the break down of the nervous system, essentially the neurons within the brain (MacGill, 2009). The break down leads to nerve cell eradication, and the casualty of tissue throughout the brain (MacGill, 2009). As the disease progress, the brain begins to shrink fiercely, developing loss of its normal functioning (MacGill, 2009). Abnormal protein groups and structures of plaques and tangles characterize the disease (MacGill, 2009). Plagues and tangles are not able to be viewed or tested in the living brain, but are able to be observed in an autopsy of an infected deceased (MacGill, 2009). Plagues Plagues are abnormal clusters of