Dementia is the Leading Cause of Alzheimer’s Disease

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Dementia is the progressive deterioration and impairment of memory, reasoning, and other cognitive functions occurring as the result of a disease or condition. Dementia can affect the person’s ability to carry out daily activities. For example, the person may forget where they live or they might think they have already done their activities but never did. Dementia can also cause the elderly to become incontinent and can’t control their urinary system. Many people get confused that dementia is a disease. Dementia is not a disease. However, it can lead to a disease or condition. Dementia is more common in the elderly population. It’s normal for people to forget things, but to a certain extent it becomes a critical issue. Depression also plays a role in the affects of dementia. Studies have been made to believe that the biological mechanisms for depression relating to dementia is, “interactions with vascular diseases, changes in glucocorticoid steroid levels that can result in hippocampal atrophy, accumulation of amyloid-[beta] plaques, inflammatory processes, and lack of nerve growth factors” (Heser et al., 2013). Dementia is caused because of plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. This can also be known as Alzheimer’s Disease. Dementia is the leading cause for Alzheimer’s Disease in the elderly. For all dementia cases, 60 to 80 percent of people with dementia will have Alzheimer’s Disease. The disease has 3 different stages, the early stage, the middle stage, and the late stage. Each of those stages has a variety of symptoms that affects the memory impairment of the person (Wieregna, Bondi, 2011). Also relating to dementia is Parkinson’s Disease and Huntington Disease. These diseases can result in impairment, which can cause challeng...

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...the world. There is no cure for dementia and the other diseases relating to dementia. Dementia is the leading cause of Alzheimer’s Disease. Alzheimer’s Disease is also the most common disease with dementia (Wieregna, Bondi, 2011). Dementia can affect the patient and families in many emotional ways. Knowing that their loved one will be going through many mental disabilities and probably won’t be able to recall some memories can be tragic. Dementia can also affect families financially. The cost for a patient significantly rises every year due to the increase of the population (Hurd, 2013). Dementia can also lead to Parkinson’s and Huntington disease, which can affect the mobility of the patient (Quinn, Busse, Dal Bello-Hass, 2013). Dementia is still one of the most widely diagnosed diseases around the world. Without a cure for it, many more people will be affected.

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