Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer’s disease

The German neurologist Dr. Alois Alzheimer first described the disease in 1906. It is the most common cause of dementia (progressive loss of intellectual abilities).
The disease is not very common below the age of 65 and virtually unknown below the age of 45. Approximately 4 million Americans have Alzheimer, 10% of all people over 65 and nearly 50% of those over 85. A person with Alzheimer’s will live an average of 8 to 20 years or more from the onset of symptoms. Alzheimer’s is a progressive, degenerative disease of the brain and the average lifetime cost per patient is $174,000.
No one knows yet exactly what causes Alzheimer’s disease, but it might be a complex set of factors.
The greatest known risk for developing Alzheimer’s is increasing age and a family history of the disea...