World Alzheimer's Day 2022 — Understanding the Basics: What Does This Neurologic Disorder Look Like? How Long Can a Person Live with Alzheimer’s? Everything You Need to Know

World Alzheimer's Day is observed every year on September 21. The day is dedicated to the progressive neurologic disorder Alzheimer's. The disease is an untreatable, progressive brain disorder that slowly robs people of their memory, thinking abilities, and ultimately their capacity to complete even the most basic tasks. In elderly persons, it is the most typical cause of dementia. Although dementia increases in prevalence as people age, it is not a typical aspect of ageing. Symptoms of the late-onset variety typically begin to show in the majority of patients in their mid-60s. Rarely, early-onset Alzheimer's strikes between the ages of 30 and 60. For older people, Alzheimer's disease is the most typical cause of dementia. Unfortunately, most people don't even know the basics of Alzheimer's and what better day than today to clear the air around Alzheimer's?  World Alzheimer’s Day 2022 Date & Theme: Know Significance of Important Health Day and Raise Awareness About Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

The disorder gets its name from Dr Alois Alzheimer who observed alterations in the brain tissue of a woman who had passed away from an uncommon mental disease in 1906. Memory loss, linguistic difficulties, and unpredictable conduct were some of her symptoms. He examined her brain after she passed away and discovered several aberrant aggregates (now known as amyloid plaques) and twisted fibre bundles (now called neurofibrillary, or tau, tangles).

What Does This Neurologic Disorder Look Like?

Even though the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer's may differ from person to person, memory issues are often one of the first signs of the disease. The very early stages of Alzheimer's disease may also be indicated by a deterioration in other cognitive abilities, including the ability to express oneself clearly, problems with vision or spatial awareness, and impaired reasoning or judgement. However, not everyone who has a mild cognitive impairment (MCI) will go on to acquire Alzheimer's. MCI is a condition that can be an early indicator of the disease. World Alzheimer’s Month 2022 Date, Theme, History & Significance: Everything You Need To Know About the Observance.

How Long Can a Person Live with Alzheimer’s?

The interval between diagnosis and death varies; it might be as short as three or four years if the patient is older than 80 at the time of diagnosis, while it can be as long as ten years or more if the patient is younger.

Alzheimer's disease is now the sixth most common cause of death in the United States, but according to recent estimates, it may come in third place among all causes of mortality for seniors, just after heart disease and cancer.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 21, 2022 08:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).