Alzheimer's Disease

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Introduction

Etiology

Diagnosis

Signs and Symptoms

Care Management Strategies

Caregiver Support

References

Post-Test

What do Ralph Waldo Emerson, Rita Hayworth and Ronald Reagan have in common? If you said that their first names began with an “R”, you'd be correct, but there's more to it than that. If you had Alzheimer's Disease, you would not be able to figure that out. Which, not coincidentally, is something they all shared.

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is an insidious, progressive, irreversible and incurable disease at the present time. As the world’s population ages, the number of individuals afflicted with the disease has reached pandemic proportions. Eighteen million people have AD worldwide, four million in the United States alone. It is estimated that by the year 2050, fourteen million Americans will have the disease. The fastest growing segment of our population is those over age 85 and it is thought that nearly 50% have AD. AD is a thief that steals an individual’s memory, orientation, affect and judgment abilities. In a sense, AD robs the individual of their “self “ and steals from family, friends and co-workers as well.

Caring for someone with AD requires special skills, particularly for Certified Nursing Assistants and Nurses who provide daily direct care to patients and their families in a variety of clinical settings. To assist you in caring for the person with AD this course will review:

  • Cause (Etiology) of dementia
  • Diagnosis
  • Signs and symptoms
  • Care management strategies and
  • Caregiver support

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