With the increase of life expectancy per capita, the proportion of elderly people has increased significantly. Experts expect that by 2040, China’s elderly aged 60 and above will reach about 400 million, and Alzheimer’s disease (dementia), a common disease of the elderly, has become a serious health risk for the elderly. There are currently 5 million people with Alzheimer’s disease in China, and there are an average of 300,000 new cases each year.
Despite this, people do not pay enough attention to Alzheimer’s disease, especially for early identification, treatment and care of Alzheimer’s patients, there are still many questions and misunderstandings.
I. Does Alzheimer’s disease (dementia) affect life expectancy?
Dementia is mostly seen in people over the age of 60, but it can also be acquired before the age of 50. Alzheimer’s is a chronic disease that often begins with mild memory loss and slowly develops into severe brain damage. After suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, patients can survive for 8 to 10 years on average. With the continuous development of medicine, the life expectancy of Alzheimer’s disease will gradually increase.
What is dementia?
“Dementia” is a professional medical term for a patient with dementia who is gradually losing various abilities. Dementia includes many manifestations, such as
1. Repeatedly asking and repeating the same questions.
2. Inability to distinguish directions
3. easily getting lost
4. Forgetting acquaintances and dates
5.No hygiene
6.Dresses oddly
7, good tantrums, etc.
3. What is Alzheimer’s disease (dementia)?
Alzheimer’s disease, also known as Alzheimer’s disease, is the most important disease that causes dementia in the elderly. In Alzheimer’s disease, there are many deposits inside the brain that cannot be removed, and the number of neurons in the brain is greatly reduced and brain atrophy occurs. As the number of neurons sharply decreases it leads to brain power loss, emotional and personality changes, and eventually severely affects the ability to perform daily living.
Does poor memory mean Alzheimer’s disease (dementia)?
Poor memory is not equal to dementia, but poor memory and memory loss is often the earliest manifestation of Alzheimer’s disease, so we must pay enough attention to memory loss in the elderly.
Fourth, who is prone to Alzheimer’s disease (Alzheimer’s disease)?
1, the elderly: Alzheimer’s disease usually occurs in older people over 60 years of age, the older the age, the greater the likelihood of the disease. 65 to 75 years of age, about 10 out of every 100 people suffer from this disease, and 80 years of age or older, about 20 to 30 out of every 100 people suffer from this disease.
2, people with a family history: Alzheimer’s disease has a certain degree of heritability, especially those with a young age of onset, more likely to have a genetic predisposition.
The risk of the patient’s parents, siblings, children suffering from this disease or other neurological disorders is several times greater than those without a family history.
3, women: the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease in women is slightly higher than in men, which may be related to the longer survival age of women.
4, other: low education level; excessive use of aluminum products or intake of food containing aluminum; a history of traumatic brain injury; lack of certain trace elements and vitamins can also increase the risk of developing the disease.
V. Can Alzheimer’s disease (dementia) be treated?
Alzheimer’s disease can be prevented and delayed by scientific means, and drugs can prolong or maintain relatively intact brain function, thus greatly reducing the suffering of patients and their families and the socio-economic burden. Patients with early-stage disease can often have their symptoms reduced after taking appropriate medications; even patients with more severe dementia. In severe cases, medications can also alleviate the patient’s symptoms to a certain extent.