...Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's Disease is a progressive and irreversible brain disease that destroys mental and physical functioning in human beings, and invariably leads to death. It is the fourth leading cause of adult death in the United States. Alzheimer's creates emotional and financial catastrophe for many American families every year, but fortunately, a large amount of progress is being made to combat Alzheimer's disease every year. To fully be able to comprehend and combat Alzheimer's disease, one must know what it does to the brain, the part of the human body it most greatly affects. Many Alzheimer's disease sufferers had their brains examined. A large number of differences were present when comparing the normal brain to the Alzheimer's brain. There was a loss of nerve cells from the Cerebral Cortex in the Alzheimer's victim. Approximately ten percent of the neurons in this region were lost. But a ten percent loss is relatively minor, and cannot account for the severe impairment suffered by Alzheimer's victims. Neurofibrillary Tangles are also found in the brains of Alzheimer's victims. They are found within the cell bodies of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex, and take on the structure of a paired helix. Other diseases that have "paired helixes" include Parkinson's disease, Down's Syndrome, and Dementia Pugilistica. Scientists are not sure how the paired helixes are related in these very different diseases. Neuritic Plaques are patches of clumped material lying...
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...dysfunction of the cranial nerve VII (the facial nerve) causing an inability to control facial muscles on the affected side. Often the eye in the affected side cannot be closed. The eye must be protected from drying up, or the cornea may be permanently damaged, resulting in impaired vision. In some cases denture wearers experience some discomfort. The common presentation of this condition is a rapid onset of partial or complete paralysis that often occurs overnight. In rare cases, it can occur on both sides resulting in total facial paralysis. Bell’s palsy is defined as a one-sided facial nerve paralysis of unknown cause. Several other conditions can also cause facial paralysis, e.g., brain tumor, stroke, myasthenia gravis, and Lyme disease; however, if no specific cause can be identified, the condition is known as Bell's palsy. It is thought that an inflammatory condition leads to swelling of the facial nerve. The nerve travels through the skull in a narrow bone canal beneath the ear. Nerve swelling and compression in the narrow bone canal are thought to lead to nerve inhibition or damage. Usually it gets better on its own with most people achieving normal or near-normal function. Corticosteroids have been found to improve outcomes, when used early, while anti-viral drugs have not.[3][4] Many show signs of improvement as early as 10 days after the onset, even without treatment. Bell's palsy is the most common acute disease involving a single nerve and is the most common cause...
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...coordinating incoming and outgoing impulses, thoughts, and feelings via nerves. Functionally, the nervous system can be divided into the central nervous system (controls in-bound and out-bound neural impulses), and peripheral nervous system (connects the CNS with the peripheral parts of the body). The PNS can be divided into subdivisions of the somatic nervous system (deals with the parts of the body we move voluntarily) and autonomic nervous system (works with the involuntary parts of the body). The CNS receives sensory input from the peripheral nervous system and produces motor responses via nerves. A nerve is a fiber composed of nerve cells and neurons. Most nerves of the peripheral nervous system contain both sensory neurons and motor neurons. The sensory neurons in the peripheral nerve carry sensory impulses to the CNS. The CNS processes this information and sends the appropriate motor signals back to the nerves via the motor neurons. (Terfera, D. & Jegtvig, S., 2015). The brain and spinal cord is what makes up the central nervous system. The brain being the command center controlling the body functions of sending and receiving messages through the nerves. At the end of each nerve cell, there is a synaptic terminal thus full of extremely tiny sacs that hold neurotransmitter chemicals. These chemicals transmit nerve impulses from one nerve to another or from nerves to muscle cells. An electrical nerve impulse travels along the neuron to these sacs that then release...
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...attacks the central nervous system. There are many believers that this an autoimmune disease. Autoimmunity means that the immune system is reaching against normal occurring antigens in the body. Although, many believe this, there is no antigen that has been identified in Multiple Sclerosis; therefore, it cannot be classified as an autoimmune disease. In the case with Multiple Sclerosis the immune system attacks and damages certain structures and cells within the CNS. The following structures and cells are: myelin, oligodendrocytes, and underlying nerve fibers. Myelin is a fatty sheath that surrounds and protects nerve fibers. Oligodendrocytes is a myelin producing cell....
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...Addiction is a major public health issue in America. In 2012, Partnership for Drug Free Kids estimated 23.5 million American adults were involved with drugs and alcohol to the point they considered to be problematic. Every person may not be directly impacted by addiction but every community and society as a whole has been indirectly affected by addiction. Many of America’s leading medical issues like cancer, heart disease and HIV/AIDS can be directly connected to the disease. Furthermore, many of America’s leading social issues like driving under the influence, domestic violence, child abuse and chronic stress can be directly related to addiction. Prior to scientific research on the disease, it was a common misconception that addiction was...
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...8/04/08 Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease affects the way you move. It happens when there is a problem with certain nerve cells in the brain. Normally, these nerve cells make an important chemical called dopamine. Dopamine sends signals to the part of your brain that controls movement. It lets your muscles move smoothly and do what you want them to do. When you have Parkinson’s, these nerve cells break down. Then you no longer have enough dopamine, and you have trouble moving the way you want to. Parkinson’s is progressive, which means it gets worse over time. But usually this happens slowly, over a period of many years. And there are good treatments that can help you live a full life. No one knows for sure what makes these nerve cells break down. But scientists are doing a lot of research to look for the answer. They are studying many possible causes, including aging and poisons in the environment. Abnormal genes seem to lead to Parkinson's disease in some people. But so far, there is not enough proof to show that it is always inherited. The four main symptoms of Parkinson’s are: Tremor, (which means shaking or trembling) Tremor may affect your hands, arms, legs, or head. Stiff muscles, slow movement, Problems with balance or walking. People usually start to have symptoms between the ages of 50 and 60, but in some people symptoms start earlier Tremor may be the first symptom you notice. It is one of the most common signs of the disease, although not everyone...
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...Alzheimer's Disease ● Definition-Alzheimer's disease is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease that occurs when nerve cells in the brain die. ● Signs-Memory loss that affects job skills, difficulty performing familiar tasks, problems with language, disorientation to time and place, poor or decreased judgment, problems with abstract thinking, misplacing things, changes in mood or behavior, changes in personality, loss of initiative. ● Treatment-specific treatment will be determined by the physician based on your age, health, and medical history, extent of disease, your tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapy, expectations for the course of the disease, your opinion or preference and at this time there...
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...TREATMENTS OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE ( First Draft ) BEL 311 ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC PURPOSES LECTURER’S NAME MADAM RAFIZAH MOHD RAWIAN SHAFINAS BINTI SAMSUDIN 2010131651 BMD3Ab b SHAFINAS BINTI SAMSUDIN 2010131651 BMD3Ab b PREPARED BY EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TREATMENT OF ALZHERMEIR’S DISEASE Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks. According to Howard Crystal & William C. Shiel Jr ( 2005 ), Alzheimer's disease is a slowly progressive disease of the brain that is characterized by impairment of memory and eventually by disturbances in reasoning, planning, language, and perception. Many scientists believe that Alzheimer's disease results from an increase in the production or accumulation of a specific protein (beta-amyloid protein) in the brain that leads to nerve cell death. The likelihood of having Alzheimer's disease increases substantially after the age of 70 and may affect around 50% of persons over the age of 85. Nonetheless, Alzheimer's disease is not a normal part of aging and is not something that inevitably happens in later life. For example, many people live to over 100 years of age and never develop Alzheimer's disease. But, nowadays there are some types of effective treatment that are effective for Alzhermeir’s disease. The management of Alzheimer's disease consists of medication based...
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...Parkinson’s disease Approximately 60,000 Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson's disease each year, and this number does not reflect the thousands of cases that go undetected. Parkinson's disease is a disorder that affects nerve cells in the part of the brain controlling muscle movement. Parkinson's is progressive, meaning the signs and symptoms become worse over time. Although Parkinson's may eventually be disabling, the disease often progresses gradually, and most people have many years of productive living after a diagnosis. We will be going through the organ system Parkinson’s affects as well as the signs, symptoms, and treatements. Organ System Affected With Parkinson’s The major organ system affected by Parkinson’s is the nervous system. The nervous system is the major controlling, regulatory, and communicating system in the body. It is the center of all mental activity including thought, learning, and memory. Together with the endocrine system, the nervous system is responsible for regulating and maintaining homeostasis. Like other systems in the body, the nervous system is composed of organs, principally the brain, spinal cord, nerves, and ganglia. These, in turn, consist of various tissues, including nerve, blood, and connective tissue. Together these carry out the complex activities of the nervous system. The various activities of the nervous system can be grouped together as three general, overlapping functions, sensory, integrative, and motor. Functions of...
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...inferior vestibular nerve, and the central pathways (intact and working properly). ENG/VNG’s calorics only evaluate the horizontal semicircular canal and the pathway through the superior portion while VEMPs evaluate the saccule (and utricle and superior vestibular nerve if using oVemps) and the inferior portion of the vestibular nerve. VEMPs can be useful supplementary information along with other vestibular assessments to find out what the etiology of the disorder might be. For instance, if a patient has abnormal calorics and a normal VEMP, then there is a focal lesion (horizontal...
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...basics * Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia, a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer's disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases. Bottom of Form * Alzheimer's is not a normal part of aging, although the greatest known risk factor is increasing age, and the majority of people with Alzheimer's are 65 and older. But Alzheimer's is not just a disease of old age. Up to 5 percent of people with the disease have early onset Alzheimer's (also known as younger-onset), which often appears when someone is in their 40s or 50s. Learn more: Early Onset Alzheimer's and Risk Factors * Alzheimer's worsens over time. Alzheimer's is a progressive disease, where dementia symptoms gradually worsen over a number of years. In its early stages, memory loss is mild, but with late-stage Alzheimer's, individuals lose the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to their environment. Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Those with Alzheimer's live an average of eight years after their symptoms become noticeable to others, but survival can range from four to 20 years, depending on age and other health conditions. Learn more: 10 Warning Signs and Stages of Alzheimer's Disease. * Alzheimer's has no current cure, but treatments for symptoms are available and research continues. Although current Alzheimer's treatments cannot stop Alzheimer's from progressing...
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...Every individual goes through different experiences while their getting older. When people age they tend to have problems these can be caused by the difference their body goes through, also this tends to happen to people who are more into their fifties. Even people who have passed the stage of 50’s can still have issues caused by the changes, which they still need to get used to because there’s no way it will change. Physical changes- while a person is aging their bodies go through many changes; these will be their skin, joint and the bones. The side effects of aging will usually be more off a wrinkled skin and also a thinner skin. People with older ages are more likely to be sensitive, their bones are more likely to break their skin is more likely to get damaged. Due to their old age they are likely to have pains within their joints. During this physical change their joins tend to become looser. They will lose weight which is caused by their cartilage become apart, also their posture starts changing they may not be able to keep a straight back due to their spine becoming round and also another change will be that their muscles will start to lose power and they will become weak. By time individuals can also experience having problems with their eye sight this could be them going through a struggle while reading or writing, some people also tend to lose their sense off smelling and tasting things. Caused from old age individuals can also have problems with their hearing. Organs:...
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...diagnosed the disease once known as ‘shaking palsy,’ as Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a central nervous system disorder that affects around 1.5 million people in America alone. James Parkinson was a doctor in London where he wrote a paper about the symptoms of Parkinson. Symptoms for Parkinson’s disease are tremors, rigidity, bradykinesia, and postural instability. Usually these symptoms are caused in result of degeneration of nerve cells in the Mostly older people have a better chance of catching the disease than younger adults. Parkinson’s disease typically begins between the ages of 50 and 65, hitting about 1% of the population in that age group. For many decades there was not...
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...Autoimmune Diseases Your body's immune system protects you from disease and infection. But if you have an autoimmune disease, your immune system attacks healthy cells in your body by mistake. Autoimmune diseases can affect many parts of the body. These diseases tend to run in families. Women - particularly African-American, Hispanic-American, and Native-American women - have a higher risk for some autoimmune diseases. The diseases may also have flare-ups, when they get worse, and remissions, when they all but disappear. The diseases do not usually go away, but symptoms can be treated. Multiple Sclerosis Is a disease affecting nerves in the brain and spinal cord, causing problems with muscle movement,balance and vision. Every nrve fibre in the brain and spinal cord is surrounded by a layer of protein called myelin which protects the nerve and helps electrical signals from the brain travel to the rest of the body. In MS, the myelin becomes damaged. This disrupts the transfer the transfer of these nerve signals,causing a wide range of potential symptoms such as: * numbness and tingling * blurring of vision * problems with mobility and balance * muscle weakness and tightness * MS can damage nerve fibres in your brain and spinal cord, which can cause muscles to contract tightly and painfully (spasm). Your muscles may also become stiff and resistant to movement, which is known as spasticity. * Neuropathic pain – caused by damage to the nerve fibres in the...
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...Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a continuously unwavering lethal neurological disease. It is revealed to bring harm to neurons, or nerve cells, that function to monitor voluntary muscle movement. ALS is one of many diseases that belong to a group called motor neuron diseases. The disorders within this group are known to cause steady deterioration of the body’s nerve cells. When understanding the extent of ALS, one must consider the function of motor neurons. These nerve cells hold residence within the brain, brainstem, and spinal cord. This specific portion is meant to monitor components of the body, while serving as the communication center between the nervous system and voluntary muscles within...
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