Leah is a psychology graduate student. On her summer break, she noticed that her 60-year-old mother's behavior seemed strange. According to Leah, her mother was acting as if she had some sort of amnesia. She insisted that her mother visit her family physician. The physician told Leah that her mother was demonstrating an early onset of Alzheimer's disease. The doctor also told Leah that she should expect her mother's condition to worsen in time. Discuss the features, causes, and treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Key terms and concepts that may be included in student responses:
? Features-Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of neurocognitive disorder; the early-onset type sets in before 65 years and progresses quickly; the disease begins with mild bouts of memory loss and disorientation which become profound with age; symptoms include agitation, irritability, apathy, and dysphoria
? Causes-neurofibrillary tangles and plaques in the brain; shrinkage of the cortex and enlargement of the ventricles of the brain; loss of dendrites within cells; deficits in acetylcholine, norepinephrine, serotonin, somatostatin and peptide Y; ApoE gene on chromosome 19; e4 allele; reduced cortex; lower hippocampus volume; chromosome 21; Down syndrome
? Treatment-cholinesterase inhibitors, drug therapy to regulate glutamate, treatment with antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs to control emotional symptoms, antipsychotic drugs control hallucinations and delusions, behavioral therapy helps patients control impulsive and angry outbursts, caregiver training