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Alzheimer's
Association
Introduction
Alzheimer’s disease (pronounced AHLZ-high-merz) is a
complex disease that affects the brain. Approximately 4.5
million Americans have this disease. Although many things about
Alzheimer’s remain a mystery, research continues to bring us a
better understanding of the disease, more accurate diagnoses,
and more effective treatments.
Alzheimer’s disease is one of several disorders that cause
the gradual loss of brain cells. The disease was first described
in 1906 by German physician Dr. Alois Alzheimer. Although the
disease was once considered rare, research has shown that it is
the leading cause of dementia. For more information on related
disorders, see Related Disorders.
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Dementia
Dementia is an umbrella term for several symptoms related to
a decline in thinking skills. Common symptoms include a gradual
loss of memory, problems with reasoning or judgment,
disorientation, difficulty in learning, loss of language skills,
and decline in the ability to perform routine tasks.
People with dementia also experience changes in their
personalities and behavioral problems, such as agitation,
anxiety, delusions (believing in a reality that does not exist),
and hallucinations (seeing things that do not exist).
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Progression of
Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s disease advances at widely different rates. The
duration of the illness may often vary from 3 to 20 years. The
areas of the brain that control memory and thinking skills are
affected first, but as the disease progresses, cells die in
other regions of the brain. Eventually, the person with
Alzheimer’s will need complete care. If the individual has no
other serious illness, the loss of brain function itself will
cause death.
Related resources
About Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's Association resources
External Web links
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Alzheimer’s Center. WebMD.com.
http://my.webmd.com
This site furnishes a broad range of information, with an
emphasis on information for individuals who are concerned
about memory problems or have Alzheimer’s disease.
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Alzheimer's Disease International (ADI).
http://www.alz.co.uk
ADI is an international membership group of Alzheimer
associations. The ADI site links to member association sites
throughout the world. It also provides information in
several languages, statistics on the number of people with
dementia worldwide, and the implications for the
distribution of research funding, especially in developing
countries.
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Alzheimer’s Disease. MayoClinic.com.
http://www.mayoclinic.com
The Mayo Clinic provides easy-to-understand facts and
information on Alzheimer’s and various aspects of
caregiving.
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Alzheimer’s Disease: Unraveling the Mystery. National
Institute on Aging.
http://www.alzheimers.org
This on-line booklet provides basic information about
Alzheimer’s disease and research and includes numerous
graphical representations.
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The Alzheimer Page. Washington University, St. Louis,
Missouri.
http://www.adrc.wustl.edu/alzheimer
This Web site provides links to caregiver homepages,
resources in languages other than English, products and
services, and other useful information.
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Health Policy Sites - George Washington University.
http://www.gwu.edu
Well-organized links to a large variety of sites grouped
by subject, including health insurance, health finance,
associations and interest groups, and other topics.
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Healthweb - Geriatrics & Gerontology.
http://www.healthweb.org
Healthweb was developed by a consortium of academic
health science centers. The site is broken down by medical
specialty and includes a section on geriatrics and
gerontology. A good research point when nothing else seems
to be working.
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Mayo Clinic Alzheimer’s Disease Center.
http://www.mayoclinic.com
The Mayo Clinic Alzheimer’s Disease Center furnishes
easy to understand, practical in-depth information on
Alzheimer’s and caregiving.
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MedlinePlus Health Information on Alzheimer’s Disease.
National Library of Medicine.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus
This site provides links to news, disease overviews,
research, statistics, clinical trials, coping issues, and
other resources.
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The Nun Study.
http://www.mc.uky.edu/nunnet
This site provides information about the Nun Study, a
long-running investigation by David Snowdon that is
providing a wealth of data about healthy aging and
Alzheimer's disease.
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Piecing Together Alzheimer’s. Scientific
American.
http://www.sciam.com/
(search on "piecing together Alzheimer's")
This journal article from the December 2000 issue of Scientific
American presents a clinical description and analysis of
Alzheimer’s disease based on current international
research.
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Progress Report on Alzheimer’s Disease. National
Institute on Aging.
http://www.alzheimers.org
This 2001-2002 version of a report issued annually
provides an overview of Alzheimer's disease and summarize
the results of federally funded research from the previous
year.
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About the brain
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Alzheimer’s Disease Process in Real Media. Alzheimer’s
Disease Education and Referral Center.
http://www.alzheimers.org
A two-minute film clip provides the viewer with a brief
tutorial about neurons, neurotransmitters, tangles and
plaques, and the death of nerve cells.
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Dana Brain Web. Dana Foundation
http://www.dana.org/brainweb/
The focus of this site is the science of the brain.
Abstracts and the full text of selected articles from Dana’s
publications are provided along with information on program
funding.
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Normal and Alzheimer Brain Comparison. The University of
Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.
http://w3.uokhsc.edu/pathology
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The Whole Brain Atlas. Harvard University.
http://www.med.harvard.edu/AANLIB
CT, MRI, and SPECT/PET scans reveal images of the brains
of people with Alzheimer’s and related disorders.
To find additional sites, go to Google.com or another search
engine with an image search, and type in such keywords as
"Alzheimer brain," Alzheimer plaques," or the
name of a related dementia such as "Parkinson's."
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Causes and risk factors
Established causes and risk factors
Controversial claims about risk factors
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Statistics
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Alzheimer's Disease Growth by State. Fact
Sheet in PDF format.
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Alzheimer's Disease: The Costs to U.S. Businesses in
2002. Alzheimer's Association, Social Research Corporation,
University of Pennsylvania.
http://www.alz.org
This report outlines how the American economy contributes
to the nation's expenditures related to Alzheimer's.
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Alzheimer's Disease Statistics. Fact
Sheet in PDF format.
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"Who Cares?" Families Caring for Persons with
Alzheimer's Disease. Brochure
in PDF format.
This statistical report on Alzheimer caregiving is based on
data from a national survey. Prepared by the National
Alliance for Caregiving and the Alzheimer's Association.
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Statistical Information on Alzheimer's Disease and
Dementia. Resource
List.
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National Vital Statistics Report Leading Causes of Death,
1999. National Center for Health Statistics.
http://www.cdc.gov
This report includes tables and narrative data on
Alzheimer’s disease, including the ranking of Alzheimer’s
as a leading cause of death.
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For family and community members
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