What is the difference between Alzheimers and Dementia?
Alzheimers:
Alzheimers disease is a brain disorder named for Dr. Alois Alzheimer who first described the symptoms in 1906.
Among the abnormalities he described in the brain were plaques (build up between cells) which contain protein fragments called beta-amyloids and tangles (which form inside dying cells) and involve twisted fibers of a protein called tau.
These abnormalities which many scientists believe disrupt the communication between neurons and/or contribute to cellular death are suspected in contributing to Alzheimers.
Alzheimers is a progressively fatal disease and may affect more than 5 million Americans. There is currently no cure for the Alzheimers disease.
It is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States.
Alzheimers is the most common form of dementia accounting for than 50% of dementia cases.
Dementia:
A general term for memory loss and decline in other mental abilities caused by physical changes in the brain.
Other diseases that may cause dementia are Parkinsons, Huntington's Korean, Dementia with Lewy Bodies, Frontallobal dementia, and Vascular dementia.
