Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a gradually progressive brain disorder that deteriorates the cognitive, behavior, and functioning status affecting more than 5.4 million people in America (Ehret & Chamberlin, 2015). The real cause of AD is unknown, but several studies are leaning toward genetic and environmental factors (Ehret & Chamberlin, 2015). However, these patients suffer from non-reversible conditions that gradually deteriorate until their death. An important concept will be to understand what happens in the brain before the disease becomes severe. According to Stahl, (2013) the AD in mind from toxic AB peptides, which lead to the deposition of amyloid plaques in the brain; that end up destroying neurons which spread all over the brain. Some
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Once a patient has been diagnosed with the AD, the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) is one of the tools that can be used to identify the stage of the disease. This test is mostly used in offices with a score of 30 as the maximum and 21-25 are early-stage of the AD, 11-20 mid-stage and a score of 10 are a severe late-stage AD. The MMSE is not a diagnostic test but a tool for tracking the progress of the disease
As noted by Feldman, (2016) there is no actual cure for the AD but the medication help during the early stage of the disease to slow down the symptoms. According to the scenario of the 76-year-old Iranian male, who was brought for strange behaviors with a score of 18 in the MMSE is diagnosed with a mild stage of dementia. The medication at this stage is not very promising because most of the drug may take effect at an early stage (Feldman, 2016).
Decision …show more content…
This medication can be used in all stages of the disease. It works by making more acetylcholine available and inhibits centrally active acetylcholinesterase, May take up to six weeks before improvement in baseline and months to stabilize (Stahl, 2014b) side effects include nausea; vomiting sleep disturbance, life-threatening effects include seizure and Rare Syncope. My reason for the choice is that the drug can be used in all stages of the disease (Feldman, 2016). I hoped to decrease the symptoms by increasing interest in activities. The difference is that patient did not show any sign of improvement, and the reason is that usually, it takes up to 6 weeks for Aricept to take
Once a patient has been diagnosed with the AD, the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) is one of the tools that can be used to identify the stage of the disease. This test is mostly used in offices with a score of 30 as the maximum and 21-25 are early-stage of the AD, 11-20 mid-stage and a score of 10 are a severe late-stage AD. The MMSE is not a diagnostic test but a tool for tracking the progress of the disease
As noted by Feldman, (2016) there is no actual cure for the AD but the medication help during the early stage of the disease to slow down the symptoms. According to the scenario of the 76-year-old Iranian male, who was brought for strange behaviors with a score of 18 in the MMSE is diagnosed with a mild stage of dementia. The medication at this stage is not very promising because most of the drug may take effect at an early stage (Feldman, 2016).
Decision …show more content…
This medication can be used in all stages of the disease. It works by making more acetylcholine available and inhibits centrally active acetylcholinesterase, May take up to six weeks before improvement in baseline and months to stabilize (Stahl, 2014b) side effects include nausea; vomiting sleep disturbance, life-threatening effects include seizure and Rare Syncope. My reason for the choice is that the drug can be used in all stages of the disease (Feldman, 2016). I hoped to decrease the symptoms by increasing interest in activities. The difference is that patient did not show any sign of improvement, and the reason is that usually, it takes up to 6 weeks for Aricept to take