Alzheimer?s disease is a form of dementia that causes gradual loss of a person?s mental abilities. It initially affects the cerebral cortex and often starts off as simple forgetfulness.
As the disease progresses, the person?s personality may undergo a complete transformation for the worse. The ability to think and function normally may be almost fully lost.
Is [...]
It can be surprising to realize that an organ as high-powered and sophisticated as the brain also has a plumbing system. And, as the case with a house’s plumbing, the drainage side of the system can get gummed up. But the symptoms are different. When a home’s drainage backs up, well…I won’t go there. When [...]
Alzheimer?s is a disease that destroys the nerve cells particularly those in the brain; it is the most common form of dementia and the risk of getting it increases with age. It is thought that currently over 18 million people throughout the world suffer from this disease.
No cure is available for Alzheimer?s disease or indeed [...]
Palliative care is specialised health care of dying people which aims to maximise quality of life and assist families and carers during progressive illness and continues after death.
Palliative care, also called comfort care, focusses not on death, but on compassionate specialized care for the living. Complete palliative care programs also address mental [...]
You may be wondering what a prion is and why you should care. Well, your ears might perk up a lot if you hear the words - ‘Mad Cow Disease’. That disease is caused by a transmissible prion.
Prion related diseases have been recognized for years. However, until recently we did not realize what caused them.
What [...]
A. Overview
From time to time, we all forget where we left our keys, walked into a room not knowing why we went there in the first place, or have trouble recalling what we ate last night. If we are elderly, our first thought or fear is ?Am I getting Alzheimer?s?? Not necessarily. [...]
The contemporary hospice offers a comprehensive program of care to patients and families facing a life threatening illness. Hospice is primarily a concept of care, not a specific place of care. Hospice emphasizes palliative care, rather than curing; quality rather than quantity of life. Hospice care is provided to patients who have [...]
Even excellent tools can be mis-used. Here are seven “sins” of medical testing:
1. Ordering the wrong test for the right condition.
If I had a nickel for every time a doctor ordered a carotid artery test in a patient with a fainting spell, I could fund my retirement several times over. And this is despite the [...]
Alzheimer’s disease and dementia are health conditions that most older people worry about. Alzheimer’s is a progressive form of dementia, caused by degenerating brain tissue.
It is ongoing and there is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s disease or the other forms of dementia.
The tangling of nerve fibers in the brain and the build up of certain [...]
It’s quite normal - though perhaps a bit jarring - to see your grandma or grandpa begin to have memory problems. They might forget your phone number, or have to think twice while recalling a childhood memory. But when should you worry? When do the memory troubles signify something more disturbing, like Alzheimer’s disease?
It’s important [...]
