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Senior Moments
May 2008
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[ SENIOR MOMENTS ]
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As I added one more year to my life this month, I become acutely aware of new potential limitations and my own (and my peer’s) increasing vulnerability. Life can be golden as you indulge yourself with interests that you were unable to take advantage of when you had responsibilities of work and child rearing. But, as we live longer, changes within our bodies happen in a normal way, but some changes have negative impacts over time.
The one condition that scares us all is dementia, and in particular, Alzheimer’s disease, which currently afflicts over 5.1 million Americans. According to the American Academy of Neurology, 10 percent of people over age 65 and 50 percent over age 85 have the disease. The Alzheimer’s Association projects that as many as 7.7 million will have the disease by 2030. The numbers rise due to more of us in the older age brackets, but also because there is currently no effective prevention strategy or cure.
Last month at the Griffith Park Adult Community Club’s general meeting, we heard from a man in his 60s about his experience with Alzheimer’s after being diagnosed with a cognitive memory loss four years ago. He participates in a support group at Assistance League Leeza’s Place in Hollywood. From his perspective, it is important to learn about the disease as early as possible, and to expect your doctor to take measures to rule out other diseases or medication side effects as the cause of symptoms of memory loss and confusion. Especially important is not allowing your doctor to just chalk up your concerns to old age.
Most of us experience forgetfulness from time to time and we should attribute it to our normal aging, but there are characteristics that suggest more serious forms of memory impairment. For example, sometimes you misplace your keys or can’t remember the right word or name. That is normal. But if this happens frequently and with difficulty, then you may have mild memory impairment. In dementia, you forget what an item is used for or put it in an inappropriate place, or may not recognize a person or start to lose language skills.
Curently, the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease is proven only by an autopsy. However, an evaluation based on information relating to the individual’s history, mental status exams, interviews with families and friends plus lab tests ruling out other conditions is accurate about 90 percent of the time.
With earlier detection, there are opportunities to focus on reducing the mental deterioration and managing the disease. In addition, there can be more thoughtful planning in regard to the demands of caregiving. According to experts, seven out of 10 people with Alzheimer’s disease live at home with family and friends providing 75 percent of their care. The burden is awesome and demands often short-change the caregivers’ ability to take care of themselves. Support outside of the family must be included in the caregiving. Leeza’s Place is one such organization that offer support for caregivers through support groups and strategies to lessen their burden.
Contact the national Alzheimer’s Association for information at 800-272-3900 (24 hours) or visit www.alz.org.