Recent orders
Alzheimer Disease its Causes, Diagnosis, Treatments, Scientific Research and Effects
RUNNING HEAD: ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
Alzheimer’s Disease its Causes, Diagnosis, Treatments, Scientific Research and Effects
Name:
Course:
Tutor:
Date:
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease is a sickness that affects not only the patient but also their loved ones as well as their caregivers. This paper focuses on Alzheimer’s disease, its causes, and the symptoms or signs. Besides, it touches on how the Alzheimer’s disease is diagnosed as well as how it’s treated. In addition, it will also trace the course and complications associated with Alzheimer’s disease and its effects to the family members and the caregivers. Lastly, it will also look at the scientific research in Alzheimer’s disease.
Introduction
The brain is made up of about 100 billion nerve cells, which are referred to as neurons. The brain performs tasks such as thinking, learning as well as remembering, besides, it helps us to hear, smell, see and in locomotion. Alzheimer’s disease in addition to other types of dementia manifests itself when there are a growing number of neurons that deteriorate and die (Tufts University, 2010).
There are over seventy different forms of dementia. The four most common cases are vascular Dementia (VaD), Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB), Frontemporal Dementia (FTD) and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), Creutzfeldt- Jakob Disease (CJD) (Terry, Phillip, & Michel, 2009).
Alzheimer’s disease was discovered by Dr. Alois Alzheimein and his colleague Emil Kraepelin in 1906. Dr. Alois Alzheimeinand was a German Psychiatrist as well as neuropathologist. The two did a surgery of the brain of a patient who died of the disease and noticed various phenomena that had not been documented before. Chief among them is a shrunken brain (Lu & Bludau, 2011). Besides, there were a couple of atypical structures that appeared in the brain which are identified as plaques and tangles. They are mainly suspect of damaging and killing of nerve cells reflected in Alzheimer’s disease. Plaques made up of deposits of a protein portions, beta-amyloid, mesh which are twisted fibers of another protein; which is called tau. Most scientists believe these proteins somehow thwarts communication among the neurons or in some other way disrupt procedure that cells need to survive on. The role played by tangles in Alzheimer’s disease is still not clear to the researchers (Tufts University, 2010).
This disease is common among older people and as one gets older, so does the chances of acquiring the disease increases. Alzheimer’s disease is more likely to occur at the age of 65 years or more. The chances of getting the disease then doubles after every five years as from 65 years. At 85 years, the chances of acquiring the disease are half or fifty percent (Tufts University, 2010).
Causes of Alzheimer’s disease
Since its discovery, Alzheimer’s disease has several causes that have been suggested over the years. There are, however, some causes that have some controversies for instance heavy metals like mercury. Chemical exposure has been floated as a possible cause of the disease. The current research is yet to come up with a single most cause of the disease. Nevertheless, the contemporary opinion is that Alzheimer’s disease is a complicated progression that involves a lot of factors that have an effect on the brain over a long duration of time. It is worth noting here that Alzheimer’s disease is not hereditary however, the risk of developing the disease is increased with a history of the diseases in one’s genealogy (Lu & Bludau, 2011).
Symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease:
i.Memory lapses that interrupt daily life activities.
ii.Inability to make a plan and solve problems.
iii.Inability to complete familiar tasks at home for example bathing and eating.
iv.Forgetfulness and inability to manage time and having problems locating objects.
v.have problems with spatial relationships and visual perception.
vi.Problems in spoken in addition to written language.
vii.Frequently misplacing things and inability to remember their whereabouts.
viii.Unsound judgment ability.
ix.Withdrawn; as they interact and socialize less actively.
x.personally change as well as mood swings.
xi.Problems in performing abstract thinking
xii.Inability to initiate tasks or processes of daily life.
The course of Alzheimer’s disease
There are seven stages in the course of the disease. Stage one is called the normal stage which is normal situation where one experiences just normal forgetfulness and this is not what is reflected by those suffering from the disease.
The second stage is called normal aged forgetfulness. This stage is characterized by what is normally experienced by people who are over the age of 65 years. People of this age and above have reported decreased memory which is normal.
The third stage id the mild cognitive impairment; is characterized by slight deficits. Such people cannot perform their duties normally.
Fourth stage is called the mild Alzheimer’s disease. This stage is where the diagnosis of the disease can be done more accurately.
The fifth stage is called the moderate Alzheimer’s disease; at this stage the individual is experiencing major characteristics such as inability to select a dress to put on.
The sixth stage is called the moderate severe Alzheimer’s disease; characterized by compromised ability to do the activities of daily living, besides, the individual experiences emotional changes.
Lastly, the seventh stage is called severe Alzheimer’s disease; characterized by inability to speak, poor memory, and solely relies on caregivers for help (Reisberg, 2011).
Diagnosis of the Alzheimer’s disease
There are several steps that are involved in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. First there is what is described as Mini-Mental State Examination which is the assessment of the cognitive aspect of an individual. It involves the evaluation of one’s memory, delays in remembering, as well as delay in representation of objects as drawing.
The second step is the evaluation of attention which involves trail making and/ or digit-span. In addition, there is language evaluation, which involves Boston naming and executive functions which are aimed at the assessment of linguistic abilities. An individual is evaluated on the digit span and trail making; verbal fluency is examined (Miltiadis, Patricia, & Ernesto, 2009). .
There is also clinical test that involves neurological examinations and laboratory tests. Besides, there is a test done using a collection of test. This is called CERAD test; which is used in most parts of the world. CERAD developed certain standardized tools to assess a range of symptom of the Alzheimer’s disease. These contain clinical neuropsychology, behavior rating scale for dementia, family history interviews and evaluation of service needs (Miltiadis, Patricia, & Ernesto, 2009).
Lastly there is multicriteria model that was designed based on three tests that are in the CERAD. These are neuropathology, besides one’s clinical history is studied and cerebral vascular disease gross findings (Miltiadis, Patricia, & Ernesto, 2009).
Treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
There is an increasing practice of using pharmacological treatment. This involves the use of cholinesterase inhibitors. This includes tacrine, galantamine, rivastigmine and donepezil. These inhibitors are used to treat only mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. Nevertheless, some of these treatments are not fully recommended. For instance, tacrine; is likely to be hepatic toxicity (Bährer-Kohler, 2009).
Intake of vitamin E has been recommended by researches as well as physical exercise which have been attached to decreased chances of one acquiring of the disease (Tufts University, 2010).
Treatment of Alzheimer’s disease requires the application of a consortium of various therapeutic procedures for better improvement. Pharmacotherapy of Alzheimer’s disease is the application of three different cholinesterase inhibitors that are presently available. These are donpezil, rivastigmine, and galantamine. The three medications act on the same mechanism; that is the augmentation of cholinergic neurotransmission by inhibition of the cholinesterase. Rivastigmine and donepezil predominantly act on muscarini receptor of the cholinergic system (Bährer-Kohler, 2009).
Effects of Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s disease has infected about 35 million people all over the world and it is the fifth chief cause of death among people of over 65 years. The death rate from the disease rose 46.1% from the year two thousand to the year two thousand and six. The disease has both social and economical implications. The cost of treatment and giving care for those infected is devastating. Besides, there are some costs which are not economic for instance those that do take care of the sick are unable to fend for themselves and there is psychological repercussion as well. There are notions that the disease might be genetically predisposing; so that it is likely to occur within a certain genealogy.
Scientific research in Alzheimer’s disease
The current research is geared towards understanding the reasons behind the occurrence of the Alzheimer’s disease. There are also attempts to find those who are more likely to be attacked by the diseases as well as improving the accuracy in which the disease is diagnosed. The research is also focusing on identifying those people who are highly predisposed to the attack. Further, there are attempts to finding out, developing and trying new treatment. Besides, there are efforts to discover treatments for behavioral problems associated with the disease (Chan, 2008).
Research is also focusing on improving the services of caregivers as well as discovering effective ways of helping family and friends members. These are meant to reduce the stress associated with giving care to the patients.
Caregivers are required to have knowledge of the disease so that their understanding of the disease is improved so that they can give the best care to the patients. Besides, they require counseling services to help them cope with the distress associated with the disease. They are advised to join support groups that can be used as platforms to champion for the rights of those are suffering from the disease. They also required to join social support and reducing family squabbles to help the caregivers understand the difficulties associated with care-giving to the infected (Reisberg, 2011).
The research has also focused on the prevention of the disease and to find a correlation that exist between certain life style, or drug usage which might mean less likelihood of being infected by the disease (Reisberg, 2011).
References
Bährer-Kohler, S. (2009). Self Management of Chronic Disease: Alzheimer’s Disease.
Heidelberg : Springer.
Chan, A. P. (2008). Alzheimer’s Disease Research Trends. New York: Nova Publishers.
Lit-Fui Lau, M. A. (2008). Alzheimer’s Disease. Berlin Heidelberg: Springer.
Lu, L. C., & Bludau, J. (2011). Alzheimer’s Disease. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO.
Miltiadis, D. L., Patricia, O. D., & Ernesto, D. (2009). Best Practices for the Knowledge Society.
New York: Springer.
Reisberg. (2011, May 5). Alzheimer’s Disease. Retrieved May 5, 2011, from Fisher Center for
Alzheimer’s Disease: http://www.alzinfo.org/
Terry, M., Phillip, D. T., & Michel, A. (2009 ). Exercise and cognitive function. Terry
McMorris, Phillip D. Tomporowski, Michel Audiffren: Hoboken.
Tufts, U. (2010). The Battle for Your Brain. Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter , 1-20.
Disc Couplings and Shaft Couplings
Keywords: Disk Couplings
Shaft Couplings
Topic: Disk Couplings and Shaft Couplings
Subject: A device used for connecting two independent shafts jointly at their ends for the purpose of transmitting power is called a coupling. Couplings do not generally allow any disconnection between the shafts during the operation process, however a few of the torque-limited couplings may tend to disconnect or slip, when they have torque limit and if the same has been exceeded.
Disk Couplings are the ones that tangentially transmit torque between a driving and driven bolt on one universal bolt circle. The torque is sent out amongst the bolts via a process of stainless steel discs made out of steel that are accumulated in a group. Disk Couplings are known to handle a speed up to 10,000 Revolutions Per Minute (RPM). Disk Couplings are superior quality motion control coupling that are designed to act as the element of torque transmission, by adjoining dual shafts, while accommodating for any misalignments of shafts.
Disk Couplings are torsionally strong when under high pressure and are designed to be flexible. Disk Couplings are of two types and they are single disc style couplings and double disc style couplings. UK and China are the top sellers of disk couplings. A few leading companies known for their disk couplings are Boson Group, England, Bibby Transmissions, UK, Shanghai Industrial Tint Group, China, FaGong Valve, China, Colossus Coupling Factory, China and many more.
Shaft Couplings are the ones that provide connection that is readily broken or restored, between two adjoining rotating shafts. Shaft Couplings can be either flexible or rigid by nature. Companies like Coupling Corporation of America are well known in the market for their superior range of Shaft Couplings. Coupling Corporation of America (CCA) is the leading and the most innovative Shaft Couplings manufacturer in the world since 1968. They do manufacture a bulk amount of Shaft Couplings, flexible Shaft Couplings and keyless hubs. The couplings manufactured by CCA come in standard size accompanied by clamp hubs for an extra layer of strong shaft connection that involves no heat, keys or hydraulics.
China (Mainland) is a leading supplier in the market of shaft couplings. Cangzhou Tianshuo Transmission Co., Ltd., Tianjin Naborui Mechanical Equipment Sales Co., Ltd., Jinan Golden Bridge Precision Machinery Co., Ltd., Yangzhou Laste Mechanical Engineering Co., Ltd., Hubei Minglei Drive Bearing Co., Ltd., Yueqing Sanfeng Transmission Co., Ltd., and Xiangfan Xin Xing Lian Machinery Co., Ltd., are the leading suppliers of Shaft Couplings from Mainland China.
Hanley, J. and Long, B. (2006). A study of Welsh mothers experiences of postnatal depression. Midwifery, 22(2), 147-157.
Annotated Bibliography
Name of Student
Name of Institution
Hanley, J. and Long, B. (2006). A study of Welsh mothers’ experiences of postnatal depression. Midwifery, 22(2), 147-157. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0266613805000793
The article aimed at examining the way Welsh mothers felt like following diagnosis with postnatal depression and whether the question of postnatal depression could be socially determined. Interviews were conducted on several mothers and the results were that mothers knew very little concerning postnatal depression and its effects hence were reluctant to share their feelings on the same.
The article is relevant to the present study because it contains firsthand experience of mothers diagnosed with depression. The findings could give insight into social and emotional effects of childbirth hence helping mothers avoid feelings of isolation.
Weinberg, M. K., Olson, K. L., Beeghly, M. and Tronick, E. Z. (2006). Making up is hard to do, especially for mothers with high levels of depressive symptoms and their infant sons. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 47(7), 670-683. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2005.01545.x/abstract?deniedAccessCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=falseThe aim of the study was to determine how depressed mothers interact with their young children. Through this goal, the researchers could analyze mother-infant affective expressiveness in the light of depressive symptoms of the mother. The results established that sons were more vulnerable to maternal depression than daughters.
The article is quite informative as far as the current topic is concerned. Its findings dig into the challenging social context of depressed mothers having to live with infants and the necessary affection that infants require from mothers.
Sayil, M., Gure, A. and Ucanok, Z. (2008). First Time Mothers’ Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms Across the Transition to Motherhood: Associations with Maternal and Environmental Characteristics. Wealth & Health, 44(3), 61-77. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J013v44n03_04#.VMahCd7peIUThe study aimed at examining the factors affecting maternal well-being of mothers such as environmental, demographic, personality, and belief. The study used postnatal depression as a measure of well-being in mothers. The study revealed that maternal depression in the postnatal period was largely the result of unplanned pregnancy, low support and negative attitude towards employment.
The information in the article is crucial to understanding the present topic. The scope of study and methods used make the article an authoritative one to use as a reference point.
Everingham, C. R., Heading, G. and Connor, L. (2006). Couples’ experiences of postnatal depression: A framing analysis of cultural identity, gender and communication. Social Science and Medicine, 62(7), 1745-1756. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953605004582The study was informed by the fact that there exist difficulties in communication between unsupportive fathers and postnatally depressed mothers. The study delved into determining the causes of poor communication between couples in such situations. It found out that mothers and fathers understand the postnatal experience from different angles, hence the lack of communication.
Much of the contents are relevant to the current topic. Poor communication is one of the experiences postnatal mothers with depression have. Therefore, this article will shed more light on the same.
Shields, B. (2005). Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression. Hachette Books.The author narrates her experiences with postnatal depression. Hers was horrible. The feelings ranged from stoicism to embarrassment to shock to melancholy all at once. Joy was a foreign term in her life. Her hopes of bouncing back to her normal feelings bounced. Everything got worse.
The book is quite informative. The author has given a careful compilation of her experience as a mother with depression. Many other depressed mothers feel these experiences, hence can shed some light on the current topic.
Williams, C. and Cantwell, R. (2009). Overcoming Postnatal Depression A Five Areas Approach. Hodder Arnold Publication.The author proposes five steps to deal with postnatal depression. These steps derive from the Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) model. They are: life situation, altered thinking, altered feelings, and altered physical symptoms.
The source is vital to making recommendations or solutions to postnatal depression. Discussing the topic without knowing the solutions is inadequate. This source will provide a background against which solutions can be sought.
Milgrom, J. and Gemmill, A. (2015). Identifying Perinatal Depression and Anxiety: Evidence-based Practice in Screening, Psychosocial Assessment. Wiley.The book contains the latest diagnosis methods for postnatal depression. The authors compare diagnosis methods across countries such as England, Australia, Wales, and Scotland. All the evidence gives an authoritative source of data as to how the condition can be detected.
Diagnosis of postnatal depression is one grey area. Mothers are not aware of the symptoms in the first place. With this resource, crucial data will be obtained to use in the current topic regarding diagnosis of the condition.
Corey, L. M. and Goodman, S. H. (2006). Women and Depression: A Handbook for the Social, Behavioral and Biomedical. NY: Springer
The book looks into the transmission of psychological disorders from depressed mother to their children. The authors examine the current state of events empirically and draw implications thereon. They give a detailed view of why children with depressed mothers should be given much attention.
The book is an accurate account of the state of things currently. It offers insight into the parental effects on children. Not only depressed mothers suffer, but their children do suffer more.
Westall, C. and Liamputtong, P. (2011). Motherhood and Parental Depression: Narratives of Women and their Partners. CRC Press
The book is a collection of experiences of various women diagnosed with postnatal depression. The women were sampled from various parts of the world, and from various places in America. The authors then conduct analyses to determine common factors cutting across the experiences.
This source is informative as it contains firsthand information on the topic. The analyses by the authors are an added advantage as it makes the topic easier to comprehend.
Association of Post Natal Illness (2014). Post Natal Depression. Retrieved 26 January 2015 from http://apni.org/leaflets/post-natal-depression/This site summarizes postnatal depression by giving succinct facts about the disease, its causes, and the effects it has on mother, child and the family. The data is compiled by professional medical persons hence is quite reliable.
The site belongs to a registered organization. The information contained therein is reliable and the latest on the topic. This source will be useful to understanding the topic faster due to its summarized nature.