My dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. I have noticed that he forgets small things fairly frequently, but he is 77, so I just thought that was from old age. I am not sure exactly what Alzheimers is. What is it, and if he has it, what should I expect for his future?
Alzheimer’s Disease is a progressive neurologic disease that causes memory loss from a certain plaque building up in the brain. Early in the disease process, short term memory is lost, so people will not remember what they had for breakfast, but they can remember something like their 5th grade teacher’s name. It is progressive over time, and more memory loss occurs and eventually people start to lose their ability to carry on their daily routines. The good news for you and your father is that it is usually very slow to progress. On average, it will be 8 to 10 years from early memory loss, to later stage Alzheimer’s.
To learn more about Alzheimer’s, watch this video from VideoMD.com.
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