Today is World Alzheimer Day -

                 Alzheimer disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder of uncertain cause and  primarily affects older adults and is the most common cause of dementia. The most essential and often earliest clinical manifestation of AD is selective memory impairment. While treatments are available that can ameliorate some symptoms of the illness, there is no cure or disease-modifying therapy (treatment that slows the course of the illness) currently available, and the disease inevitably progresses in all patients. It is exceptional for AD to occur before age 60. The incidence and prevalence of AD increase exponentially with age, essentially doubling in prevalence every 5 years after the age of 65 years

 DIAGNOSIS:
                  Memory problems are typically one of the first signs of cognitive impairment related to Alzheimer’s disease. Some people with memory problems have a condition called mild cognitive impairment(MCI). In MCI, people have more memory problems than normal for their age, but their symptoms do not interfere with their everyday lives. Movement difficulties and problems with the sense of smell have also been linked to MCI. Older people with MCI are at greater risk for developing Alzheimer's, but not all of them do. Some may even go back to normal cognition.
                   The first symptoms of Alzheimer's vary from person to person. For many, decline in non-memory aspects of cognition, such as word-finding, vision/spatial issues, and impaired reasoning or judgment, may signal the very early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.

 1.Impairment in immediate memory ( what we have eaten today, what did I say etc
2.Calculation : difficulty in calculations say 100-7
3.Language: Difficulty in reading and writing, word finding
4.Reasoning: Difficulty in reason out things
5.Spatial disorientation: difficulty in finding far from near objects.
6.Always rule out B 12 deficiency in all cases of MCI
7.Always rule out vascular dementia. Do carotids ultrasound, intima media thickness, treat high cholesterol levels, keep BP and sugar under control.