Introduction
Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disorder that progresses slowly. It is characterized by impaired memory, which leads to disturbances in planning, reasoning, memory, perception and language. The disease was named after Alois Alzheimer, a Germany, who was the first doctor to describe the disease in 1906.According to scientist, Alzheimer’s diseases is caused by over-production of beta-amyloid protein that cause the death of nerve cells. Although Alzheimer’s disease is not part of the normal aging process, the possibility of having it increases considerably after the age of 70. It affects approximately 50% of people who are over the age 85.
Treatment and Management of Alzheimer’s disease
Currently there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but doctors and caregiver use both medication and non-medication treatment to manage the symptoms of the disease. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved two classes of drugs for treating Alzheimer namely; Partial glutamate antagonists and Cholinesterase. Although there is no medical prove to show that these drugs slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, these drugs helps in relieving the symptoms.
Cholinesterase Inhibitors
The formation of new memories in the brain is carried out by a chemical neurotransmitter known as acetylcholine. In order to make this vital chemical to be available in brain, Cholinesterase inhibitors are used “to block the breakdown of acetylcholine” (Crystal, 2010). With the availability of more acetylcholine, it becomes easier for the brain to form new memories. FDA has approved four drugs in this class but only three are commonly used by physicians, these are Galantamine (Razadyne), Donepezil Hydrochloride (Aricept) and Rivastigmine (Exelon). Patients taking these drugs experience diarrhea, nausea, cramping and vomiting.
Partial Glutamate Antagonists
“Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain” (Crystal, 2010) According to scientist, over production of Glutamate cause nerve cells deterioration. To counteract the effect of this chemical, FDA approved drug Memantine (Namenda) is used to help decrease glutamate hence activating nerve cells. There is no scientific indication that Memantine slows down Alzheimer’s disease progression but studies shows that patients taking this drugs can take care of themselves better that patients on other drugs like placebos.
Non-Medication Treatments
Maximizing social interaction for patient is the key fundamental of non medication based treatments of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Patients are encouraged to walk, dance, sing, interact with other people etc. This treatment also involves cognitive rehabilitation where patient train their memory through computer practices. There is a continued study on effectiveness of these methods and how they benefit patients.
Other Diseases related to Alzheimer
Alzheimer is the “most common type of dementia, accounting for 60 to 80 percent of cases” (Alzheimer’s Association, 2010). Dementia is a broad term used to describe mental abilities that interfere with a patient’s personal life. Other diseases that causes dementia, and are closely related to Alzheimer’s disease includes Parkinson’s diseases, Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease and Huntington’s disease
Parkinson’s disease
The onset of Parkinson’s disease is marked by tremors, stiffness and shakiness of the body and difficulty in muscle control and walking. Patients suffer from impaired speech and lack of facial expression.
Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease (CJD)
Like Alzheimer’s disease, CJD is a rapidly progressive fatal disease affecting every 1 person out of 1 million people worldwide. The disease affects persons over the age of 60. Studies have shown that the cause of CJD results from prion protein assuming “an abnormal three-dimensional shape” (Alzheimer’s Association, 2010). This abnormality causes destruction of brain cells, which results to dementia.
Huntington’s disease
Huntington’s disease is a severe brain disease caused by changes in inherited gene. These changes “lead to destruction of nerve cells in certain brain regions” This disease is hereditary and person whose parent suffer from the disease have 50 percent chance of suffering from Huntington’s disease.
Useful Activities to Alzheimer’s Client in the Home Setting
According to Elizabeth Gould, activities aimed at patients with Alzheimer’s diseases are “meaningful when they reflect a person’s interests and lifestyle, are enjoyable to the person, help the person feel useful and provide a sense of belonging” (Gould, 2009). For this to be possible, the caregiver has to develop trust with the patient by showing “sincere interest in the activities and interest that the patient enjoys” (Gould, 2009). The caregiver need to designing activities that match the patient’s abilities and choice.
Home environment is ideal for creating huge opportunities for meaningful activities. Family members should be encouraged to create walking path that encourages the patient to safely walk outsides. A fish tank or color display should be set up; this encourages a person to initiate communications. Family photos, greeting cards, attractive pictures and safe items and tools should be assembled where the patient spend most his time. A vegetable or flower garden is a great way to keep the patient engaged by playing part in nurturing it. All activities that involve the patient should be conducted in a safe, quite and comfort environment that reduce the patient’s fear and confusion. Patients should be monitored all the time to avoid wandering away.
Caregiver should encourage people with Alzheimer’s disease to use their skills in “dairy activities to remain as independent as possible” (Gould, 2009). Patients who love to cook should be encouraged to participate in cooking task such mixing ingredients rather than just watching another person cook. It’s important to note that the results are not as important as the person’s participation. Taking this into consideration, patient can be encouraged to participate in washing a car for fun even when the car is not dirty. All activities should take “into account a person’s abilities in order to promote involvements” (Gould, 2009). When it’s appropriate, patients should be given an opportunity to attend support activities such as community service project and attending play and other fun activities. The patient should be helped to remain connected with a place of worship. These activities make a person feel as part of the community.
Warning Signs of Alzheimer’s Caregiver Stress
Taking care of an older person who has Alzheimer’s disease is difficulty and the nature and responsibilities involved can be very stressing. It’s important for caregiver to be able to identify signs of stress and know how to cope and if necessary seek help. The following are warnings signs indicating that a caregiver is experiencing stress:
Denial: – This happens when one is taking care of a close family member. The caregiver is in denial about the “disease and its effect on the person who has been diagnosed” (Stall, 2003).
Anger: – Caregiver may express anger directed at the person with Alzheimer’s disease or other people. This happen out of feeling that other people don’t care or understand what the caregiver is going through.
Social Withdraw: – The caregiver may withdraw from interesting activities that used to bring pleasure and/or shun close friends and neighbors.
Depression: – The caregiver may experience broken spirit that affects his/her ability to cope with the situation.
Exhaustion: – Completion of vital daily task become impossible
Sleeplessness: – The caregiver ever increasing concerns about the patient may make it impossible for him/her to sleep.
Irritability: – This leads to the caregiver being moody and negative reaction and response.
Lack of Concentration: – This makes it almost impossible for caregiver to perform common tasks.
Health Problems: – This can be both mental and physical health deterioration on caregiver.
Change in appearance: – The caregiver appearance may start to look different and unattractive, from the way he/she dresses to the surrounding environment where the caregiver operates from.
Conclusion
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, degenerative brain disorder, affecting 50 percent of people over the age of 85. The disease stems from over-production of beta-amyloid protein that causes the death of nerve cells. Currently, there is no known cure for the disease but physicians use FDA approved drugs to manage the symptoms. Non-medication treatments are used in maximizing patient’s social interactions. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of Dementia and is closely related to Parkinson’s disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and Huntington’s disease. For patient receiving care at home, it’s important for caregivers to establish meaningful activities which reflect the patient’s lifestyle and interests and help them feel valued and as part of the community. The patient safety must be taken into consideration at all times. Taking care of a person with Alzheimer can be very demanding and can easily lead to stress. It’s important for caregiver to recognize signs of stress, and seek help if necessary.
Works Cited
Alzheimer’s Association. (2010). Related Dementias. Web.
Crystal, H. (2010). MedicineNet. Web.
Gould, E. (2009). Dementia Care Practice. Web.
Stall, R. (2003). 10 Warning Signs of Caregiver Stress. Web.