The Effects Of Dementia On Alzheimer s Disease And...

The Effects of Dementia Alex Guthrie University of Tennessee Chattanooga Introduction Dementia is a chronic illness that effects millions of Americans annually with increasing numbers. The general understanding of dementia is that it affects the mind, and while it does affect the mind, entangles much more than just that. Dementia engulfs a patient s mind, family, a level of caregiving, and an involvement in research of the disease. The Mind Adults age 65 years and older make up around 13 percent of the population (39 million people). This number is likely to increase significantly over the next 30+ years to encompass about 20 percent of the population (88.5 million). It is gathered that about 1 in 10 adults age 65†¦show more content†¦Behavioral changes can include increased aggression and disruptiveness. This behavior can almost be perceived as a deterioration or demotion in a person’s maturity. While it most certainly is not, it happens in a way that an individual seemingly regresses in their decision making and maturity. It is theorized that some of the behavioral research done on other populations of similar behavioral competency (child like behavior) could be done on an elderly population suffering from the behavioral regression of dementia. There has been little research such as this done, however. Currently, there is no cure for dementia. There are some drug therapies that are currently i n use to help increase the chemical acetylcholine in the brain in an attempt to aid in memory retention and judgement. A few drugs in the class are: Donepezil, Rivastigmine, and Galantamine. These have been attempted treatments for the disease, but have had mixed results. In some cases such treatments have come up short, and in drastic cases, these treatments have made matters worse for some patients. Some of these treatments have been known to cause confusion, delirium, and even increased risk of mortality. An alternative to these medicinal treatments have been almost strictly environmental. This has been through the application of behavior-analytic principles that help see future problems before they arise. This application also allows for an more individualized care plan for