An Overview of Alzheimers Disease and Dementia Essay

Alzheimer’s Disease Dementia Intro/Overview Section of Disease Paper â€Å"Horribly tragic, scary, slow, sad, maddening, etc.† These are words some would use when asked what Alzheimer’s/dementia is. This answer is common to those who have watched loved ones suffer from this disease that ultimately lead to their passing. As defined in McGraw Hill Medical Dictionary, Alzheimer’s Disease is a ‘progressive neurologic disease of the brain that causes irreversible loss of neurons and eventual dementia characterized by loss of memory, impairment of judgment, decision making, language use, and awareness of surroundings’(pg. 14). Dementia defined by the same dictionary is the ‘progressive loss cognitive function, usually associated with†¦show more content†¦In chapter 4 of the â€Å"Facts and Figures† report the aspect of care giving for patients with Alzheimer’s disease in thoroughly discussed. The number of Alzheimer and dementia caregivers, hours of unpaid care and economic value of the care by each state was researched and a chart depicts each sates breakdown. The overall total for just the United States is 10,987,887 caregivers who provide 12,513,005,548 unpaid hours of care, resulting in a total economic value for all 50 states of $143,899,563,806.00. These numbers are outrageous and will only continue to increase as those diagnosed Alzheimer’s disease grow. Mortality, Morbidity, Prevalence, Incidence Epidemiology Section of Disease Paper According to the 2010 studies and reports compiled in Alzheimer’s Associations â€Å"Facts and Figures†, Alzheimer’s Disease is the 7th leading cause of death and 5th leading cause of death for those over 65 years of age. 5.3 million people in the United States have this disease. This disease generally affects men and woman over 65. More woman than man have this disease but the reason for this is still debated. 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