Canada Prescription – Diagnosis and Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease is named after Alois Alzheimer who first wrote about the disease in 1906. Over a hundred years later, approximately 26 million people suffer from this debilitating disease and it is predicted to strike 1 out of 85 persons by 2050. Alzheimer’s a progressive, degenerative and terminal disease that affects the brain. It is a form of dementia that develops in the late stages of life, usually after age 65, and is characterized by difficulty acquiring new memories, long term memory loss, confusion, mood swings, and the gradual loss of the ability to care for oneself. There is no cure, at this time, for Alzheimer’s. Canada prescription medication can help mitigate symptoms.
Research into the cause of Alzheimer’s has produced more questions than answers at this stage of the game. However, the disease is split into four stages with each stage marking progressively worsening cognition and function. Pre-dementia present symptoms that are often confused with other causes such as age or stress such as memory loss and difficulty remembering information recently learned. In Early-dementia, language problems appear as well as agnosia, apraxia, and impairment of executive functions. Those in the Moderate-dementia stage are struggling with paraphasia, difficulty reading and writing, lack of coordination, failure to recognize family members, and increasingly erratic behaviour. The last stage, advanced dementia, has the patient completely dependent on caretakers and very little retention of the person they once were.
Prevention of Alzheimer’s is the question of the century and there are very few, if any, definitive answers. Many believe that continued mental stimulation through intellectual activities may reduce the risk of contracting Alzheimer’s. Other look to dietary supplements, such as gingko and vitamin E, as stimulating healthy brain functions. However, more studies must be done before a conclusive answer can be offered. Only four Canada prescription medicines on the market have been approved for the treatment of Alzheimer’s.
Aricept, Razadyne, Exelon are cholinesterase inhibitors that help improve memory and thinking functions especially when used in conjunction with Namenda. Because there is no cure for the disease and the drugs may not work for everyone, patients must decide on when to start and stop medication. The major challenge associated with Alzheimer’s is the erratic and sometime dangerous behaviour displayed by patients especially in the advanced stages of the disease. In these cases, what is needed most is a loving and patient caregiver rather than medication.