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If you choose to follow any links to the abstract and/or complete text of the item listed below, you will be leaving the Strategian Web site. If you wish to return to this page from the Web page you are sent to, please use the Back option of your browser. Jeffrey L. Cummings and Greg Cole Alzheimer Disease. (... a concise, informative review of Alzheimer Disease [AD]--incidence, diagnosis, pathology, genetics, treatment, etc.--as of 2002. Reviewing a large number of Alzheimer Disease studies, the authors state that the disease accounts for 60% to 70% of cases of progressive cognitive impairment in elderly patients and that, statistically, the prevalence of AD doubles every 5 years after the age of 60 increasing from a prevalence of 1% among those 60- to 64-years-old to up to 40% of those aged 85 years and older. In addition, the disease is more common among women than men by a ratio of 1.2 to 1.5. Risk factors for AD--besides age and female sex--include the presence of the apolipoprotein e4 allele, head injury, low serum levels of folate and vitamin B12, elevated plasma and total homocysteine [an amino acid] levels, family history of AD or dementia, fewer years of formal education, lower income, and lower occupational status. On the other hand, a lower risk for Alzheimer Disease has been associated--through a variety of studies--with higher levels of education, moderate levels of daily wine consumption, and higher levels of fish in the diet. Patients with AD usually survive 7 to 10 years after onset of symptoms and typically die from bronchitis and pneumonia. Reviewing other studies, the authors further state that the various risk and protective factors identified through epidemiologic studies may exert effects on the likelihood of developing AD through their impact on cerebral reserve--the ability of the brain to withstand the accumulating amyloid [protein] burden without evidencing dysfunction and cognitive impairment. The authors also review various treatments for AD including cholinesterase inhibitors, vitamin E, selegiline, risperidone, olanzapine, and others. Other keywords and phrases -- Alzheimer's Disease, caregiver, caregivers, clinical, cost, depression, diagnosis, epidemiology, families, family, pathophysiology, plaques -- from the text of the article; please see the bibliography) JAMA--The Journal of the American Medical Association Volume 287, Number 18 (May 8, 2002): 2335-2338. How to find the above journal, magazine, or other publication? See Step 3: Locate of the Information Strategy for details. Questions? Please let me know. |
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