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What is Mild Cognitive Impairment? Five Ways MCI Differs from Alzheimer’s Disease

Article by Susan Nickerson DC

While most people are quite familiar with Alzheimer’s disease, the disorder most commonly affecting the mental functioning of the elderly, there is considerably less public awareness of Mild Cognitive Impairment or MCI.

If you are like most people, you might wonder “what is Mild Cognitive Impairment? I’ve never even heard of this disorder.”

MCI indicates that the individual has impaired memory; however, there is preservation of the ability to function at high levels on daily activities. Furthermore, MCI is frequently accompanied by disorders such as anxiety or depression. MCI progresses into Alzheimer’s disease at a rate of 12-15% a year if no preventative measures are taken.

There are two types of Mild Cognitive Impairment:

1) Amnestic MCI, which significantly affects memory.

2) Nonamnestic MCI, which affects mental functions such as language and attention span, while leaving memory largely intact.

Amnestic MCI is much more likely to develop into Alzheimer’s disease than nonamnestic MCI. However, currently it is not possible to accurately predict who will progress from Alzheimer’s to MCI.

Symptoms of Mild Cognitive Impairment

The following criteria generally need to be present for a doctor to diagnose a patient as having Mild Cognitive Impairment:

1) Some degree of memory impairment – this generally manifests itself as problems remembering the names of people you recently met, trouble remembering the flow of a conversation, and an increased tendency to misplace things.In most cases, MCI patients can compensate for these deficits with an increased reliance on memory tools such as notes and calendars.

2) Poor performance on memory tests.

3) Some form of other neurological difficulties, such as language, motor skills, or sensation.

4) Normal functioning in daily activities. This last point is very important. Whereas Alzheimer’s patients need assistance to properly carry out normal daily activities, MCI patients do not.

5 Ways MCI Differs from Alzheimer’s Disease

Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D., President and Medical Director of the non-profit Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation, offers five differences between Mild Cognitive Impairment and the more severe disorder, Alzheimer’s disease:

1. MCI patients exhibit relatively normal general cognitive functioning (thinking, understanding, and decision-making). Alzheimer’s patients show significant impairment in these cognitive functions.

2. MCI patients can carry out nearly all normal activities of daily living. Alzheimer’s patients show significant impairment in normal activities of daily living.

3. MCI patients exhibit little or no personality change. Alzheimer’s patients generally exhibit strong evidence of personality changes.

4. MCI patients show evidence of memory impairment, but maintain judgment abilities. Alzheimer’s patients show evidence of both memory and judgment impairment.

5. MCI patients do not demonstrate symptoms severe enough to be categorized as dementia. Alzheimer’s patients suffer from dementia due to decreased mental functioning.

So now you can see what Mild Cognitive Impairment is — and how it differs from Alzheimer’s.

It is important to see your doctor immediately if you or your loved one exhibit symptoms indicative of Mild Cognitive Impairment. MCI is frequently a precursor to the more debilitating Alzheimer’s disease.

And as with Alzheimer’s, the best way to slow the progression of MCI is to catch it in its early stages.

Dealing with the elderly that suffer from Dementia, Alzheimer’s, or other mental instability can be difficult

Article by Jason Rosete

Taking care of the elderly can already be an occasionally taxing chore, however dealing with the elderly that suffer from dementia, Alzheimer?s, or other mental instability can be even more difficult. In this brief article, we?ll go over some of the many ways you can make caring for these elderly residents significantly easier.

There are many different types of dementia ? not only that brought on by Alzheimer?s, but also vascular dementia (when parts of the brain get cut off from the supply of blood), amongst others. The effects can range from memory loss to being agitated more easily, loss of communicative skills including hearing and speech, fine motor skills and manual dexterity, and general inability to do everyday tasks like eating, dressing, bathing, getting into and out of beds or chairs, or even walking. A common issue is maintaining the resident?s sense of dignity, due to the increased amount of care (especially on a personal level) that residents with dementia require. Since most of this care is extremely intimate, it is important to try and keep the resident from feeling overly embarrassed.

It is important to realize what types of difficulty your family member is experiencing, as certain facilities don?t have the ability to properly care for elderly residents with dementia, whereas others might be specifically geared towards them. Probably the biggest challenge is the sudden and unprovoked changes in mood that most commonly take the form of anger, frustration, or agitation. It can be very difficult to calm the resident down, and if their communication skills have been deteriorated, it can be even harder. Sometimes a favorite meal or snack or form of entertainment will work, but it is important not to treat the resident too much like a child.

Certain rare effects might be present, such as anachronistic thoughts or even fantasies. Some residents might believe they are reliving a certain period of their life, and think they are in a different place or even a different time than they actually are. While there are certain medications that can slow the effects of dementia, there is currently no cure. All in all, your goal as a family member should always be to make sure your loved one is receiving the proper type and amount of care, depending on their mental state. As an employee, it should be to help as much as possible while intruding as little as possible.

http://www.ResidentialCareFacilityListing.com

Gilroy, CA : Love, Meditation The Key To Reducing Pain For Dementia & Alzheimer’s Victims? : View From A Private Duty Caregiver

Article by Richard Kuehn

Gilroy, CA : Love, Meditation The Key To Reducing Pain For Dementia & Alzheimer’s Victims? : View From A Private Duty Caregiver Serving Carmel, Carmel Valley, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Gilroy, Gonzalez, Greenfield, Hollister, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Salinas, San Juan Bautista, Seaside And Soledad California

Chronic pain is a huge problem in the United States, affecting a full one-third of the population according to a recent report by the Institute of Medicine. For these 116 million American adults, it often results in depression, moodiness and dependence on drugs which can make the victim tired and anti-social. However, there are many break-through research projects that are finding that simple things like meditation, hypnosis and tai chi can be as effective as medical remedies. The problem for many patients and their physicians are that the root cause of the pain can often be difficult to diagnose and treat with anything other than pain killers or muscle relaxing drugs. Researchers at the renowned Stanford University Neuroscience and Pain Lab, however, have made great strides both in finding effective treatments and in helping patients understand how the brain works and the cause of their pain. Subjects can watch their own brains react in real time and learn how to control their response, similar to how one would build up weakened muscles. The researchers at Stanford found that when one focused on something distracting other than the actual pain, they had more activity in different parts of the brains which, in turn, reduced their pain. “It’s like having a flashlight in the dark. You choose what you want to focus on. We have that same power with our mind, Ravi Prasad, a pain psychologist at Stanford told the Wall Street Journal. If this isn’t done, the dysfunction feeds on itself, Sean Mackey, chief of the division of pain management at the University told the Wall Street Journal. “You get into a vicious circle of more pain, more anxiety, more fear, more depression. We need to interrupt that cycle,” he said. Mackey was recently, along with his colleagues, awarded a $ 9 million grant by the government’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) to study mind-based therapies for lower back pain. One issue we struggle at here at Family inHome Caregiving is that many of our Clients suffer from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. If the disease is advanced, it’s often difficult for these people to communicate that they have pain, and when something is helping to reduce the pain. This makes treatment extremely challenging. One thing Dr. Mackey pointed out is that one of his favorite treatments, surprisingly, is love. He and colleagues recruited 15 Stanford undergraduates and had them bring in photos of loved ones and a friend. On average, the subject reported feeling 44% less pain while focusing on their loved ones than on a friend. Brain images showed they had strong activity in the nucleus accumbens, an area deep in the brain which is involved with dopamine and reward circuits. I cared for my grandmother for five years before she passed away at the age of 97. She suffered from Alzheimer’s disease. Although it was difficult for her to communicate her feelings, particularly towards the end, you could definitely see the emotions in her face, from happy to sad to angry. She would often stare for hours at pictures of friends, family and other loved ones and you could tell that she took great pleasure in this despite the fact that she had forgotten who they were. I hope that in the end it reduced her pain as well, although I will never know for sure. This is great research Dr. Mackey and his team are doing, and I’m confident that more studies will be done to see how simple things like focusing on a picture might help someone with Alzheimer’s disease or chronic pain. This growing population with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease need all the help they can get.http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204323904577038041207168300.html

Gonzalez, CA : Public Wants More Funding For Alzheimer’s Research : View From A Private Duty Caregiver

Article by Richard Kuehn

Gonzalez, CA : Public Wants More Funding For Alzheimer’s Research : View From A Private Duty Caregiver Serving Carmel, Carmel Valley, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Gilroy, Gonzalez, Greenfield, Hollister, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Salinas, San Juan Bautista, Seaside And Soledad California

The Alzheimer’s Association recently released a report entitled Alzheimer’s From The Front Lines which is a collective effort of thousands of Americans to share the real-life challenges they face dealing with their own or a friend or family member’s struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. I spoke at the forum in San Francisco (over 43,000 people took part in the public input process) earlier in the year and felt it was a great use of public resources. It brought together members of the government, the public, and non-profits to discuss how to deal with the many issues those caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease must face. The report mentioned was created from more than 130 public sessions across the nation as well as input from comments on its web site, and is meant to be a working draft towards laying out a plan under the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA). President Barack Obama signed this bill into law in January of 2010 to deal with the fact that as many as 5.4 million American’s have the disease and half of our population knows someone who has it. Sadly, one in eight people over 65 have the disease and nearly half of those over 85 years of age have it. The report found 10 major challenges:1. A lack of public awareness2. Insufficient research funding3. Difficulties with diagnosis4. Poor dementia care5. Inadequate treatments6. Specific challenges facing diverse communities7. Specific challenges facing those with younger-onset Alzheimer’s8. Unprepared caregivers9. Ill-equipped communities10. Mounting costsRegular readers of my blog know that I am a big supporter of the Alzheimer’s Association, a great group of people that provide support for those diagnosed with the disease and their families, who struggle with numerous issues as the person goes through the various stages of the disease. They also have a 24-hour hot line at 800-272-3900 which can help those with stressful issues which may arise at any moment. Unfortunately, the disease doesn’t get anywhere near the level of funding which is needed, in part because many people are still under the impression that dementia is just a normal part of the aging process and there is no cure. Results of the public comments found that many family caregivers believe that the lack of public awareness about the diseases is the primary reason for reduced public sympathy, insufficient resources dedicated to addressing Alzheimer’s and under diagnosis. The truth is, there are numerous promising research projects which indeed could someday lead to a cure. Federal funding for Alzheimer’s research, however, is at a historic low, with less than one in 10 grants submitted actually funded. Recent public support for NAPA is encouraging. This bill is charged with creating a plan to figure out a way to grapple with the issue which could bankrupt the Medicare fund if we don’t pay close attention to it. The cost to society in the U.S. alone was estimated to be $ 183 billion in 2011, up $ 11 billion from 2010. Most of these costs are covered by Medicare and Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California). Medicare payments for beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease and/or dementia are three times greater than for those without, and a whopping 9x greater for Medicaid/Medi-Cal patients. Clearly, finding a cure for the disease would not only reduce a lot of heartbreak, it would also have a significant impact on helping reduce our deficit. USA Today recently called attention to the fact that celebrities have been coming forward recently and admitting to having to the disease, which could help remove the stigma associated with it. Singer Glen Campbell, who was honored at the Country Music Association Awards recently, is now on tour and he has come forward with his wife telling the story of how he struggles with it. His disease is so far advanced that he can’t tell the story himself. He has to be constantly reminded that he has Alzheimer’s disease because his short-term memory is so poor. Thankfully, almost 70% of U.S. respondents said that the government should increase spending for Alzheimer’s research in a recent Harvard School of Public Health survey. Let’s hope this turns into a reality. I would like to see a cure found during my lifetime. November is both Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month and National Family Caregiver Month. Let’s work to build awareness of how devastating Alzheimer’s disease can be and salute those caring for a loved one who suffers from the disease. It’s one of the most difficult jobs in the world.

http://napa.alz.org/alzheimers-from-the-frontlines-2http://www.alz.org/norcal/http://www.familyinhomecaregiving/bloghttp://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/medical/alzheimers/story/2011-11-08/Report-seeks-national-priorty-status-for-Alzheimers/51115348/1

About Richard Kuehn & Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey:After more than a decade of caregiving, both in a professional environment and for a 97 year old family member I was dissatisfied with service from local caregiving agencies. I became convinced of the need for a service which provides very personal assistance to elderly and founded Family inHome Caregiving serving the Monterey Peninsula. Please visit my blog where I talk about important senior issues.

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Gilroy, CA : Alzheimer’s Disease Can Grab Hold Of Your Mind In Your 40′s: Let’s Find A Cure: View From A Private Duty Caregiver

Article by Richard Kuehn

Gilroy, CA : Alzheimer’s Disease Can Grab Hold Of Your Mind In Your 40′s: Let’s Find A Cure: View From A Private Duty Caregiver Serving, Carmel, Carmel Valley, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Gilroy, Gonzalez, Greenfield, Hollister, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Salinas, San Juan Bautista, Seaside & Soledad CaliforniaWith Medicare, Medi-Cal and Private Insurance all looking to slash costs, some are questioning whether it is worth the financial cost of testing for a disease if there is no cure for it. But what about the human cost if someone has disturbing symptoms and a Doctor doesn’t want to test for a disease because there is no cure? This is a disturbing moral dilemma that I am sure will be more and more common as more baby boomers retire and the cost of medical care continues to soar. The Monterey Herald highlighted this issue on the front page of the health section on Thursday, with a focus on the tragic Alzhiemer’s disease. “I don’t remember if I had a bath,” Barbara Lehser, only 54 years old, told the paper. “It took me two hours to follow a recipe. I drove to my childhood homestead the other week instead of my own home. It’s really scary,” she said. Her Doctors and many others are arguing over whether to test her for Alzheimer’s disease. The debate was in high gear at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference held in Paris France last week, where research on new methods such as easier brain scans, an eye test and a blood test made it clear there will be more tools for Alzheimer’s diagnosis in the future. Current drugs only treat Alzheimer’s disease symptoms. They only work on half of the people they are prescribed to, and they only last for one year on average. Some argue against diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s victims. There is no data “to show that knowing makes any difference in outcomes. Until we do, this is going to be a tough sell,” Dr. Kenneth Rockwood of Dalhousie University told the paper. As regular readers of my blog know, I am an avid supporter of the Alzheimer’s Association, a great group of people who help the families of those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. They are also the largest private funder of Alzheimer’s research in the United States and have been involved in every major discovery over the past three decades. Having cared for my grandmother for more than five years before she passed away in January, I can tell you that there is nothing more terrifying than losing your mind and not knowing why. I completely disagree with Dr. Rockwood and anyone else who is in support of letting sleeping dogs lie. If someone is losing their memory, or in the case of Ms. Lehser, driving back to a childhood residence instead of going home, they want to know why. Although the research studies indicate that treatments for Alzheimer’s disease are only 50% successful and last only a year, on average, averages can be deceiving. We went through myriad medications for Nana, and have done the same for numerous Clients of Family inHome Caregiving with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Some work, some don’t. Everyone has different body chemistry. But having even one day with a loved one who is disappearing before your eyes is better than nothing. I wouldn’t give up any of those lucid moments with my grandmother for any amount of money. I once worked as a temporary employee for an HMO and at their weekly staff meeting they were talking openly about how they wished a prematurely born baby would die. The ICU care was just killing their budget and their bonuses were going to suffer. I walked off of the job in disgust. We can not make life and death or quality of life decisions based on money, it is not moral. Ms. Lehser’s story is, thankfully, a rare one. Most people don’t get Alzheimer’s disease until they are in their senior years. However, it is not unheard of. Click here only if you are ready to read a tear jerker. This story is one of the saddest I have ever read on Alzheimer’s disease and I have written about it before on my blog. It tells the story of a woman who at the age of 82 takes care of three children Darío, 55, in socks and diapers, a former nurse, María Elsy, 61, who at the age of 48 started forgetting patients’ medications, and whose rages made her attack a sister who bathed her and is now a human shell, mute, and fed by nose tube, and Oderis, 50. He denies that his memory is failing but buys only one thing at a time at the store so he won’t forget what he came for. If he gets Alzheimer’s, he says, he will poison himself. The four live in a village in Columbia where early onset Alzheimer’s affects almost everyone. Their memories start failing in their 40′s, sometimes as early as 32, and the average resident has full-blow Alzheimer’s by the age of 47. Tragic as it is, the village is a great setting for a research study. Inbreeding and environment are two possible causes. Unfortunately the region is filled with drug traffickers and it’s been difficult to get a full-blown research project done. However, it does show two things. One: Alzheimer’s doesn’t affect everyone, and there are likely cause and effects that can be discovered by studying populations like this; and, Two: the concept that Alzheimer’s disease is an old person’s disease that nothing can be done about because it is a function of age is a false one. Last year, Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey was the biggest fundraising team for the annual event called Memory Walk, which has been renamed Walk to End Alzheimer’s this year. We have raised over $ 5,000 so far and are hoping to raise $ 20,000 by October. If you can afford to, please support our efforts by clicking here. As Mrs. Cuartas said, “To see your children like this … It’s horrible, horrible. I wouldn’t wish this on a rabid dog. It is the most terrifying illness on the face of the earth.” Let’s all do our part to make sure we find a cure for this dreadful disease. It cold happen to you, or someone you love dearly.

http://www.montereyherald.com/health/ci_18566176http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/02/health/02alzheimers.htmlhttp://walktoendalz.kintera.org/monterey11/rjkuehn

About Richard Kuehn & Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey:After more than a decade of caregiving, both in a professional environment and for a 97 year old family member I was dissatisfied with service from local caregiving agencies. I became convinced of the need for a service which provides very personal assistance to the elderly and founded Family inHome Caregiving serving the Monterey Peninsula. Please visit my blog where I talk about important senior issues at:http://www.familyinhomecaregiving.com/Blog

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The Effectiveness of Occupational Therapy For Your Loved One Suffering From Alzheimer’s

Article by Dick Harkes

What Can We Do To Improve Quality of Life of Our Beloved-one?

Occupational Therapy is one of the aids to make life more pleasant for people with Alzheimer’s Disease or another type of Dementia.

De side effects of this misery also include a social aspect. The sufferers from Alzheimer’s and other Dementia become more and more dependent of others: their caregivers. The patients lose their own initiative and are getting problems in participation in social activities.

The drugs available for Alzheimer’s patients only work very temporarily and will have a limited efficacy. The effects are very different from patient to patient.

One of the things we can do is providing some Occupational Therapy, like training to do simple things around the house.

There are several researches that found out that non-pharmacological treatment could have the same or better effects as the effects of drug-treatments for people with dementia.

Occupational Therapy EffectivenessAfter a period of Occupational Therapy with older patients with mild dementia and their primary caregivers the following changes were reported:The patients show an improved daily performance such as:

more initiative;improved motor and process skills;less need for assistance.All having the effect of an increased quality of life and pleasure in performing daily activities.Concerning the caregivers:improved sense of competence;improved sense of mastery of the situation;improved communication and supervision skills;changed cognition on patient’s behavior and caregiver role.Which also yielded a sense of an improved quality of life.

Conclusion:The daily performance, communication, sense of competence and quality of life of an older patient with mild dementia and his or her primary caregiver can be improved by Occupational Therapy.

It’s necessary to set appropriate goals (suitable for the capabilities of the patient), train the (primary) caregiver and possibly make some adaptations in the physical environment. This way Occupational Therapy can be increasingly successful.

What Makes Occupational Therapy So Useful?

People with Alzheimer’s disease often have difficulties in completing routine tasks in their day-to-day lives. As mentioned before one, of the benefits of Occupational Therapy is the patient becoming more independent and showing more initiative.

In a Dutch trial the levels of improvement by Occupational Therapy exceed the effects registered in previous trials of medications and other interventions.

So there is no doubt about the value of including this therapy in dementia treatment.

What Are The Possibilities For Friends And Family?

The friends and family of a person with Alzheimer’s are important, especially when the person still lives at home. It is important for them to learn to cope with the forgetfulness of their beloved-one.

Be conscious of their really forgetting things that were so common before. React as if you were a computer program. They can repeat over and over again without ever getting impatient and without ever losing their temper.Oh yes, it applies on your stamina. On the other hand the more you’re able to realize they really can’t help their forgetfulness, the more comfortable you will feel.Look for someone who can advice you on the right exercises for Occupational Therapy that help the person to manage daily activities, including their personal care.Ensure they cannot reach to dangerous items like medications, stairwells and all kinds of flammable materials.Install electrical cooking devices with a timer to prevent fire.Install extra switches on items that also may be dangerous, such as the oven and stove. You can also remove the control knobs, but that makes them difficult to operate for yourself too.Prevent a person with Alzheimer’s from wandering outside. They can easily lose their way back or the traffic it isn’t save for them anymore.

Related Therapy For Alzheimers Articles

Ho To Distinguish Early Onset Alzheimer’s From “Normal” Alzheimer’s Disease.

Article by Dick Harkes

What Is Early Onset Alzheimers

If someone is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease before the age of 65, we speak of Early Onset Alzheimer’s. It is an exceptional appearance of the disease: less than five percent of all Alzheimer’s Disease patients suffer from this type. Probably it is even under two percent.

If we speak of the age under 65, then it is really under that age. This form of Alzheimer’s Disease appears often with people between 40 and 50 years old. Even there are cases known with people between ages 30 and 40.

Early onset Alzheimer’s disease symptoms look the same as those of late beginning of the Disease. We discuss the difference that appear at a closer look below.

In personal life there is certainly a difference while the person with Early Onset Alzheimer’s often is still active with work, family and social activities when the symptoms begin.

Comparison of Early Onset and Late Start Alzheimers

At a closer look, there are differences between Early-Onset Alzheimer’s and the more common later start of the disease:

ProgressionA number of studies indicate that the early beginning type has a faster regression than what is experienced in late-onset Alzheimer’s. Other FeelingsAs said before the person with Early Onset Alzheimer’s mostly still has an active social life and job. Until the diagnosis they usually are physically more fit and active. This often makes them react differently to the diagnosis and disease resulting in them feeling more likely powerless, frustrated and depressed. More Microscopic Changes In The BrainSome experts believe that younger brains need to suffer more damage before the person starts to show symptoms. That could be the reason of the younger people tending to have more of the microscopic changes found in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease.These changes include twisted nerve cell fibers, known as neurofibrillary tangles, and a sticky protein called beta amyloid, which forms structures called plaques. Hereditary DisorderIn many cases Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease appears to be linked with a genetic defect on chromosome 14. This link is not connected with late starting type of Alzheimer’s. Myoclonic TwitchesMyoclonus – Muscle Twitching (is brief, involuntary twitching of a muscle or a group of muscles) and also signs of spasms – are more generally seen in the early beginning of Alzheimer’s disease than in late-onset Alzheimer’s Disease.

Early Onset Alzheimers Possibly a Hereditary Disorder

Early Onset Alzheimer’s is also called Early Onset Familial Alzheimer’s Disease (EOFAD), or shortly Familial Alzheimer’s Disease (FAD). It is an uncommon form of Alzheimer’s disease that as we stated before usually strikes earlier in life: between the age of 40 and 50 and exceptionally at an even younger age.

Research has shown that there is a genetic link in an autosomal dominant fashion. That means you only need to inherit the abnormal gene from one parent in order for you to develop the disease. Possibly the inheritance of your mother is more dominant.

Approximately half of the cases of early beginning Alzheimers disease are related to a genetic link.

A significant proportion of early-onset Alzheimer’s is linked to three genes. These three genes are different from the APOE gene – the gene that can increase your risk of Alzheimer’s in general. But you can have the APOE gene and never develop Alzheimer’s. Conversely, you can have Alzheimer’s and not have the APOE gene.

The genetic path of inheritance is much stronger in genes of patients with the early starting of Alzheimer’s. If you have one of the three genes that are linked to Alzheimer’s, the risk of developing Alzheimer’s before age 65 are significant.

Test For It or Not?

If you know about occurrences in your family of Alzheimer’s at a younger age, should you get tested for it?

Some people benefit from knowing what their chances are, other really don’t. So it is very personal to everybody. We can’t advice you on that. Even if the genes as described above are found in your genetic material it is still possible you never develop the disease. And: do you want to live a life in fear?

At the other hand. If you already have a great fear to be inherited with the disease, you could find some peace in the certainty of not having these genes. And also if they are found, you could organize your life to it and retain the best quality of life possible for you.Ultimately it is a 100% personal decision and it is up to you.