Images+of+Alzheimer's+Disease+Then+and+now

Key Findings and Research: Today it is predicted that one in ten people over the age of sixty-five will have Alzheimer's Disease. According to the latest research and the National Institute on Aging, it is estimated that 5.1 million Americans have Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and that number is predicted to rise significantly with the ever growing population of elderly, and the understanding that the risk for AD increases with age.

= Catching Up With Alzheimer =

Many years passed after Alzheimer's famous discovery, before extensive research into the cause of Alzheimer's Disease was a priority. In fact, from 1910 through the 1960's AD remained virtually unknown outside of medical publications (Toledo, 2006). Most cases of dementia type sypmtoms were diagnosed as a common part of old age. By the early 1980's it was known that the characteristic plaques and tangles discovered by Alzheimer are caused by high levels of a protein called beta-amyloid, causing plaques and abnormal function of the protein tau, causing tangles. By the late 1980's the genes encoding these proteins would be identified and the following decades would involve an intense investigation into the molecular, biochemical and genetic basis for AD. These studies would also pave the way for developments in treating ,diagnosing and preventing Alzheimer's disease (Sisodia, 2007). Today, Alzheimer's disease remains an irreversible and incurable progressive brain disease.

= Watching the Brain at Work =

= = Research in the field of Psychopathology has improved due to the many techniques currently developed for studying the brain at work. Images of the progress and effects of Alzheimer's Disease in the human brain have undergone extreme changes due today's technological advances. The staining techniques of Franz Nissl advanced neuropathological studies for Alzheimer, but today's technology allows scientists to get a glimpse of the working brain. What was once depicted through microscope slides and film can now be demonstrated through digital imagery and sophisticated computer technology, with the use of techniques such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), electroencephalography (EEG), computerized tomography (CT), and positron emission tomography (PET).

In a story by Ivanhoe Broadcast news for the American Institute of Physics in March of 2006 the recent discoveries and research, conducted by scientists at NYU, include, new computer software enabling analyses of EEG results to help detect early signs of Alzheimer's. By converting EEG scans into numbers, Psychiatrists can detect differences in the left and right sides of the brain. Through this early detection, it is hoped this technology will enable doctors to delay the progress of the disease for those family members predisposed to the disease. The seven year study has proven to be ninety-five percent accurate in predicting decline. The following video shows one families' story:media type="youtube" key="NOLC8BTOy-Q" height="315" width="420" Video Source: []

= Hope Through Early Detection =

= = It is hoped that early detection of Alzheimer's will enable doctors to treat individuals with the disease as they would treat any other disease. New technology involving a neuro-imaging scan called PiB PET has shown to identify early stages of Alzheimer's disease in individuals much earlier than diagnostics currently used, as early as eighteen months sooner. This early detection not only gives individuals a greater chance of staving off symptoms of the disease, it is predicted the technolgy will realize billions of dollars saved in treatment costs. The PiB PET detects beta-amyloid in the brain, a molecule characteristically at high levels in the brain's of individual's with Alzheimer's disease (CSIRO, 2008). //PiB PET scan comparing brains of people with and without Alzheimer's disease. ( [|Credit] : CSIRO)//

= Understanding Alzheimer's Disease =

Demonstrating the effects of Alzheimer's Disease has changed immensely from Dr. Alois Alzheimer's time. The following computerized animations and accompanying narration make a complex subject matter come to life for professionals and lay people.

=Then:= These images are interesting from a scientist's stand point, but provide little information for the patients and families affected by Alzheimer's Disease. Image source: Maurer and Volk, 1997

=Now:= This animated video and accompanying narration of the process of Alzheimer's disease is an example of using today's computer technology as an informative and educational resource, making a complex subject matter come to life for professionals and lay people alike.

media type="youtube" key="wzkQyWpu10E" height="315" width="560"

= = = = = = = The Stages of Alzheimer's Disease =

= = =Now:= What happened to Auguste Deter? This description by Dr. Alzheimer of the unusual behavioral symptoms displayed by his patient Auguste D. are understood today as the typical symptoms in the stages of Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer described, without identifying her, a "51-year-old woman" who showed "as one of her first disease symptoms a strong feeling of jealously towards her husband. Very soon she showed rapidly increasing memory impairments; she was disoriented carrying objects to and fro in her flat and hid them. Sometimes she felt that someone wanted to kill her and began to scream loudly... After 4 1/2 years of sickness she died"(Maurer, 1997).

Today, more information is known about the stages of Alzheimer's Disease. The physiological changes responsible for the abnormal behavior documented by Alzheimer in the case of Auguste D. are creatively explained through this video portrayal of the stages of Dementia of the Alzheimer's type known today. media type="youtube" key="9Wv9jrk-gXc" height="315" width="420"