Facts about Alzheimer’s and Other Forms of Dementia

Currently Alzheimer's disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S.  For older adults, it is ranked third and is just behind heart disease and cancer.  There are several forms of dementia but Alzheimer’s is the most common.  Other types of dementia include Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal disorders, and vascular dementia.  

Alzheimer’s disease is named after a German psychiatrist and neuropathologist, Dr. Alois Alzheimer.  In 1901, Dr. Alzheimer began observing a 51-year-old female patient at the Frankfurt Asylum who had a range of strange behavioral symptoms, including a loss of short-term memory.   Throughout the next five years of her life, Dr. Alzheimer studied the women.  Upon her death, he examined her brain where he discovered “many abnormal clumps (now called amyloid plaques) and tangled bundles of fibers (now called neurofibrillary, or tau tangles).  These plaques and tangles in the brain are still considered some of the main features of Alzheimer’s disease.”

Researchers now believe Alzheimer’s disease begins about a decade before the first symptoms appear such as memory loss and other cognitive problems.  During this period, toxic changes begin in the brain that includes abnormal deposit of proteins, which form amyloid plaques and tau tangles.  In addition healthy neurons stop functioning, lose connections with other neurons, and die.

While symptoms vary, the early stages of Alzheimer’s include a decline in non-memory aspects of cognition, such as word-finding, vision/spatial issues, and impaired reasoning or judgment.  As the disease progresses, memory problems increase as well as symptoms such as “wandering, getting lost, trouble handling money and paying bills, repeating questions, taking longer to complete normal daily tasks, and personality and behavior changes.”  Most people are diagnosed with the disease in this stage. 

MorningStar at Englefield Green understands the devastation a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia is for a family.  We have 50 secure suites, including studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom floor plans, and provide compassionate care to seniors with mild to advanced stages of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. 

MorningStar at Englefield Green embodies the very best in senior living with a distinct mission statement of “to honor, to serve, to invest” that sets us apart from other senior living communities.  With a foundation built on honoring God, valuing seniors and investing in a staff with a felt calling to serve, we offer loving, compassionate care within a beautiful home-like setting.  Please set up a tour to see for yourself our unique approach to memory care.  

Source: nia.nih.gov/health/alzheimers-disease-fact-sheet