While the only way to positively diagnose Alzheimers Disease is to examine the brain tissue of a deceased individual, many behavioral changes are also usually related to the disease. In the early stages of the disease, problems dealing with loss of short term memory are often encountered by the affected individual. Another early onset chatacteristic of Alzheimers Disease deals with the patient's personality, showing a noticable increase in apathy and decrease in spontaneity.

As time goes on, patients also encounter trouble understanding abstact ideas when reading and also during other times, such as planning out the activities for the day. As a result of the frustration encountered by patients during this time, irritability generally increases. In the later stages of Alzheimers, loss of long term memory is also apparent, with patients not being able to remember the name of the city they live in or what year it is. Carrying on a conversation may become impossible, and the affected individual may also wander around aimlessly. Patients commonly lose control of their bladders and bowels if this stage of the disease is reached.

Close friends and family members become unrecognizable during the final stage, and patients lose the ability to care for themselves. Most are then moved to a pofessional care facility by their families at this point. When death comes, it is usually caused by pneumonia or another disease related to severely failing health. While the average length of the disease from the time it is diagnosed to the time of death is six to eight years, the range of documented cases has been from two to 20 years.

Jennifer McGilton
mcgilton@u.arizona.edu
6 November 1997
http://student.biology.arizona.edu/ad