Alzheimer's

https://saigonnhonews.com/doi-song/suc-khoe/khi-nguoi-than-mac-benh-alzheimer/ Khi người thân mắc bệnh Alzheimer Mai Lâm – 11 tháng 9, 2024 Một ngày, khi biết cha, mẹ, hay chồng, vợ của mình được chẩn đoán mắc bệnh Alzheimer, bạn sẽ cảm thấy thế nào? Chúng ta thường nghe nói, nhưng không quan tâm nhiều đến căn bệnh này trước đây, có thể vì chuyện đó xảy ra cho những người ở thế hệ trước ta, như ông bà cố, ông bà nội, ngoại. Nhưng đến tuổi trung niên hoặc khi bản thân mình cũng là một người già, cha hoặc mẹ bạn hoàn toàn có thể là bệnh nhân của chứng mất trí nhớ, lúc đó bạn mới giật mình vì những thông tin về chứng bệnh đáng sợ này. Hơn thế nữa, ngày nay bệnh Alzheimer ngày càng trẻ hóa. Đã có những bệnh nhân được chẩn đoán bệnh mất trí nhớ khi mới ở tuổi đôi mươi. Hàng loạt những triệu chứng như thường xuyên nhầm lẫn, để sai vị trí của đồ dùng cá nhân, không thể tự chăm sóc bản thân, quên tên mọi người quen và cả người thân yêu trong gia đình như chồng/ vợ, con cái. Đây là căn bệnh với những biểu hiện kinh khủng, khi ba mẹ không nhớ bạn là con của họ, khi mẹ bạn hỏi bạn là ai, khi mẹ khăng khăng nói bạn ăn cắp tiền của bà, khi một buổi sáng đang ở sở thì nhận tin mẹ đã bỏ ra khỏi nhà mà không biết đi đâu. Bệnh Alzheimer liên quan đến những hoạt động sau: -Hoạt động ý thức, tư duy -Hoạt động tâm thần -Sinh hoạt hàng ngày Một vài vấn đề có thể làm phát triển bệnh Alzheimer: Căng thẳng, trầm cảm; Mất ngủ; Mỡ máu cao; Áp huyết cao; Áp huyết tâm trương thấp dưới 70. Khi bệnh đã phát triển, hiện chưa có thuốc hay phương pháp điều trị hiệu quả. Vào Tháng Bảy năm 2023, FDA phê duyệt một loại thuốc để chữa bệnh Alzheimer. Nhưng theo các nhà chuyên môn đánh giá, thuốc sẽ không thể điều trị dứt điểm, mà chỉ làm chậm sự phát triển của bệnh. Chính vì vậy, hãy quan tâm chăm sóc đến sức khỏe khi chưa bị phát bệnh. Mặc dù bệnh Alzheimer thường bắt đầu bằng việc mất dần khả năng ghi nhớ thông tin mới, bệnh này và hầu hết các bệnh gây ra chứng mất trí đều tiến triển thành tình trạng không có khả năng tự chăm sóc bản thân, khó nói và khó nhìn chính xác. Ở giai đoạn cuối của bệnh Alzheimer, nhiều người mất khả năng đi bộ và duy trì khả năng kiểm soát bàng quang và ruột. Nhiều người sẽ trải qua những thay đổi tâm trạng dữ dội ảnh hưởng đến hành vi và một số người phát triển những ý tưởng sai lầm, ảo giác gây phiền nhiễu cho họ và những người chăm sóc họ. Không gì cô đơn cho bằng việc chăm sóc người thân bị bệnh Alzheimer, vì họ luôn xem bạn như người lạ. Những người từng chăm sóc người thân bị bệnh thấy chứng mất trí nhớ không diễn ra như một con dốc thoai thoải, nó là một loạt các bước đi giật cục. Những thay đổi lớn đến đột ngột và không báo trước. Một nghiên cứu ở Hong Kong cho thấy 35.7 % người chăm sóc bệnh nhân mất trí nhớ phải dành hơn 20 giờ chăm sóc mỗi tuần, tương đương với công việc bán thời gian, ngoài công việc chính thức của họ. Những người chăm sóc bệnh nhân mất trí nhớ có tỷ lệ căng thẳng cao hơn những người chăm sóc những người mắc các bệnh khác. Ngoài việc bảo đảm cho người bệnh sạch sẽ, thoải mái, được ăn uống đầy đủ, an toàn, hãy để mắt đến họ khi tắm, mua tã để giảm thiểu các tai nạn tiểu không tự chủ, vì điều này khiến họ rất đau khổ. Những người chăm sóc biết họ cần phải chăm sóc ngày một nhiều hơn, nhưng họ không chắc điều đó sẽ diễn ra như thế nào – hoặc chứng mất trí nhớ của người thân sẽ tệ đến mức nào, hoặc nhanh đến mức nào. Sau đây là một số điều có thể làm cho việc chăm sóc người thân bị Alzheimer tốt hơn. Tìm hiểu càng nhiều thông tin càng tốt về căn bệnh mà người thân của bạn đang mắc phải. Tập trung vào nhu cầu và khả năng còn lại của người bệnh. Hãy luôn có một bác sĩ chăm sóc chính hiểu biết về chứng mất trí nhớ và nhu cầu y tế của người đó. Xem xét nhu cầu về mặt tình cảm, thể chất và tinh thần của chính bạn. Đáp ứng những nhu cầu này sẽ có lợi cho cả bạn và bệnh nhân mất trí nhớ. Mất trí nhớ là một căn bệnh tiến triển. Hãy yêu cầu trợ giúp khi cần, lập kế hoạch cho những thay đổi có thể xảy ra và biết rằng cuối cùng, một người có thể không thể cung cấp tất cả các dịch vụ chăm sóc cần thiết cho người bệnh. Cố gắng sắp xếp thời gian, để bản thân bạn được nghỉ ngơi xứng đáng. Mỉm cười. Điều đó khiến bạn cảm thấy tốt hơn và giúp người bạn chăm sóc tin tưởng bạn. Thỉnh thoảng, hãy ghi âm lại cuộc trò chuyện của bạn với người được bạn chăm sóc. Lưu ý giọng điệu và ngôn ngữ của bạn. Hãy kiềm chế nếu cần thiết. Viết nhật ký: việc viết nhật ký giúp chúng ta giải tỏa, vượt qua những ngày khó khăn nhất và còn là kỷ vật cho những ngày tốt đẹp. Ngay từ bây giờ, hãy lưu tâm giúp cha mẹ và chính bản thân hầu có thể tránh được bệnh Alzheimer nguy hiểm bằng những việc làm này: Đọc sách; Học điều gì mới; Lưu tâm đến chất lượng giấc ngủ; Không để bị căng thẳng lâu ngày; Lưu ý không để bị trầm cảm; Sinh hoạt lành mạnh, duy trì giao lưu dù ở tuổi nào; Duy trì huyết áp ổn định. Khi thường xuyên gặp các vấn đề gợi ý đến bệnh Alzheimer, hãy gặp bác sỹ để được hỗ trợ sớm. https://getpocket.com/explore/item/we-ve-been-studying-the-same-people-for-76-years-this-is-what-we-ve-found-out-about-alzheimer-s?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-us https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7C2tf7cq98 The history of NSHD About the NSHD 1946 cohort: a message from Nick Fox …What have we found so far? We cannot attempt to cover all our numerous research findings to date, as there have been so many. But our investigations have highlighted some key themes. 1. Amyloid accumulation starts before symptoms We found that around 18% of “cognitively normal” people from the cohort had amyloid PET scans like those seen in people with Alzheimer’s disease – a finding that tallies with other studies in people around the world who don’t have symptoms. These individuals also had slightly lower performance on sensitive tests of cognition and slightly increased rates of brain shrinkage. While the significance of the finding for amyloid frequency is unclear – and hence our protocols and consent processes mean that unlike some MRI findings we do not give the results to participants – we think that these individuals are at higher risk of developing cognitive impairment in the future, something we plan to look out for closely in the years to come. 2. Child cognitive tests indicate brain function later in life We found that cognition assessed in childhood predicted cognition around 60 years later. This is consistent with earlier findings for the whole cohort, suggesting that some aspects of cognitive performance are stable over a lifetime. This matters because cognitive function is not just about the mind – it helps to shape everyday skills, supports quality of life and ultimately predicts how long we live. However, the level of cognitive performance can be potentially improved. In the same report, education and occupation in midlife predicted later cognition after taking account of childhood cognitive scores. We had seen this in the whole cohort too, which counters an old argument, still sometimes made, that education is nothing more than a marker of IQ. In other words, level of education and type of occupation can positively affect cognitive performance in later life regardless of cognitive skills in early childhood. It also emphasises that education does not just increase opportunities but has a significant effect on brain health. 3. Importance of early heart health checks Some of the first publications from Insight 46 showed that high and rising blood pressure in those aged in their 40s and – in some cases their 30s – predicted smaller brain volume. There are several possible mechanisms for this, including microstructural damage from high blood pressure and a higher burden of small blood vessel damage in the brain. The latter is thought to be a marker of brain frailty, raising the risk of stroke, dementia, depression, impaired mobility and death. Similar outcomes were seen in relation to heart health in general, using an index that includes blood pressure, use of anti-hypertension medication, diabetes, smoking and high body weight. Conversely, falling blood pressure in later life may in some cases be a marker of poor brain health. Similar findings may also apply to body weight. A follow-up analysis found that declining body weight in the two years before the scan predicted amyloid. These findings have significant implications for public health, suggesting that routine checking of heart health, and blood pressure, in particular, may need to start much younger than is typically recommended – probably at or before the age of 40. 4. A blood test for Alzheimer’s disease Most experts will agree that when we have new drugs for Alzheimer’s disease, they are likely to have maximum benefits if taken early in the disease, and preventing the onset of cognitive decline would clearly be preferable to trying to slow or halt memory decline that has already started. It is unlikely that the expensive PET scans we are conducting in Insight 46 will be able to screen whole populations, so there is much interest in developing blood tests instead. Using state-of-the-art methods sensitive enough to detect 1g of salt dissolved in one million trillion litres of water, we were able to show that a blood marker is capable of detecting amyloid in the brain with about 85% accuracy. We are currently looking at a range of new blood tests that seem to be even better at detecting amyloid, and at even lower cost. The prospect of new drugs that can clear amyloid from the brain provide even more reason to intensify efforts to identify amyloid pathology early, cheaply and at scale. Studies using the whole NSHD cohort have also shown complex relationships between cognitive function and several bodily functions, including those of the lungs, bones and kidneys. This probably reflects biology shared between the brain and these organs. We are currently looking to see how these findings relate to the brain health measures we have made in Insight 46. A similar “common cause” story applies to depression and cognitive function, and we are currently looking into how depression relates to the brain. On the other hand, health-related behaviour such as smoking, physical exercise and healthy diet genuinely seem to predict cognitive function (negatively for smoking, positively for exercise and diet). We have been emphasising prediction of health problems, but it’s equally important to understand resilience. Why can some people navigate through or escape these problems altogether even though they are apparently at risk, from genes or certain disadvantages in life? Does it come down to pure luck? But luck is, of course, just another way of saying we don’t know something. Uncovering what predicts Alzheimer’s That brings us to retirement. Retirement is one of the most vivid life transitions we can experience. Yet we know surprisingly little about its effects on ageing, including mental ageing. Work provides many of the everyday things that sustain our brain health: physical activity, mental stimulation, the security of an income, a role in society and a structure to our daily lives. We risk losing these when we retire unless we can find ways to maintain or replace them. With its life course design, NSHD provides an ideal opportunity for us to investigate the effects of retirement across a range of health outcomes, including brain health, and we hope to be able to report on this in the near future. But perhaps the most profound contribution that Insight 46 can make is to uncover what predicts Alzheimer’s disease – one of the biggest causes of disability and dependency in older people. At the age of 76, the cohort study is still relatively young when it comes to examining this aspect. However, as participants continue to age, Alzheimer’s will inevitably become more common. Indeed, some studies suggest that we have over a 30% chance of developing this condition if we live beyond our mid-80s. To reduce these odds, we need to be able to look back over the whole life course to see where we can best intervene. We mentioned education and leisure activities, heart health, and maintaining quality of life after retirement. But the richness of information provided by NSHD will open possibilities not yet even thought of. So, to achieve these goals we need to keep NSHD and Insight 46 going. We have already started another wave of assessments that will increase the number of study members with dedicated brain investigations to 1,000. We want these to become the world’s first continuously followed cradle-to-grave studies of general health and brain health. Our aim is to keep building a whole-of-life model that others can complete after we ourselves have retired. These findings have significant implications for public health, suggesting that routine checking of heart health, and blood pressure, in particular, may need to start much younger than is typically recommended – probably at or before the age of 40. 4. A blood test for Alzheimer’s disease Most experts will agree that when we have new drugs for Alzheimer’s disease, they are likely to have maximum benefits if taken early in the disease, and preventing the onset of cognitive decline would clearly be preferable to trying to slow or halt memory decline that has already started. It is unlikely that the expensive PET scans we are conducting in Insight 46 will be able to screen whole populations, so there is much interest in developing blood tests instead. Using state-of-the-art methods sensitive enough to detect 1g of salt dissolved in one million trillion litres of water, we were able to show that a blood marker is capable of detecting amyloid in the brain with about 85% accuracy. We are currently looking at a range of new blood tests that seem to be even better at detecting amyloid, and at even lower cost. The prospect of new drugs that can clear amyloid from the brain provide even more reason to intensify efforts to identify amyloid pathology early, cheaply and at scale. Studies using the whole NSHD cohort have also shown complex relationships between cognitive function and several bodily functions, including those of the lungs, bones and kidneys. This probably reflects biology shared between the brain and these organs. We are currently looking to see how these findings relate to the brain health measures we have made in Insight 46. A similar “common cause” story applies to depression and cognitive function, and we are currently looking into how depression relates to the brain. On the other hand, health-related behaviour such as smoking, physical exercise and healthy diet genuinely seem to predict cognitive function (negatively for smoking, positively for exercise and diet). We have been emphasising prediction of health problems, but it’s equally important to understand resilience. Why can some people navigate through or escape these problems altogether even though they are apparently at risk, from genes or certain disadvantages in life? Does it come down to pure luck? But luck is, of course, just another way of saying we don’t know something. Uncovering what predicts Alzheimer’s That brings us to retirement. Retirement is one of the most vivid life transitions we can experience. Yet we know surprisingly little about its effects on ageing, including mental ageing. Work provides many of the everyday things that sustain our brain health: physical activity, mental stimulation, the security of an income, a role in society and a structure to our daily lives. We risk losing these when we retire unless we can find ways to maintain or replace them. With its life course design, NSHD provides an ideal opportunity for us to investigate the effects of retirement across a range of health outcomes, including brain health, and we hope to be able to report on this in the near future. But perhaps the most profound contribution that Insight 46 can make is to uncover what predicts Alzheimer’s disease – one of the biggest causes of disability and dependency in older people. At the age of 76, the cohort study is still relatively young when it comes to examining this aspect. However, as participants continue to age, Alzheimer’s will inevitably become more common. Indeed, some studies suggest that we have over a 30% chance of developing this condition if we live beyond our mid-80s. To reduce these odds, we need to be able to look back over the whole life course to see where we can best intervene. We mentioned education and leisure activities, heart health, and maintaining quality of life after retirement. But the richness of information provided by NSHD will open possibilities not yet even thought of. So, to achieve these goals we need to keep NSHD and Insight 46 going. We have already started another wave of assessments that will increase the number of study members with dedicated brain investigations to 1,000. We want these to become the world’s first continuously followed cradle-to-grave studies of general health and brain health. Our aim is to keep building a whole-of-life model that others can complete after we ourselves have retired. This will be a road map to guide hypotheses for future research but also enable travel in exciting new and unknown directions. But ultimately the only way of knowing what is going on in the brain is to examine it after death – and we are humbled that already over a third of Insight 46 have signed up for postmortem brain donation. The life course of NSHD will eventually be complete, as it will for all of us. However, that certainly won’t be the end, thanks to a rich body of data and evidence which will continue to flow from the UK’s different birth cohorts. While we continue to plan future assessments, at the same time we look back over the incredible information that the 1946 participants have already provided. In doing so we can only imagine what James Douglas would be thinking if he could see where his study of the cost of childbirth is now – 76 years later and counting. This post originally appeared on The Conversation and was published November 13, 2022. This article is republished here with permission. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzLZh7875ZA Tests for Dementia: SLUMS Assessment DISCLAIMER This channel and its content, such as text, graphics, images and other material shown is for your informational purposes only. The content is not intended to substitute for professional or medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The use of the information in these videos is solely at your own discretion. 🙋 Answer to Cryptogram: It's time to explore how well your brain scores 00:00 Intro 00:12 Cognitive Test Information 01:42 SLUMS Assessment https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqMy3MXy-Fk Diagnosing dementia: an artificial intelligence-based visual test Neural Central https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlZJRfguDj0 When Is It Time to Move Someone To Memory Care? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymp2SgFhNtw 4 COMMON DEMENTIA CAREGIVER MISTAKES https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX5Kw2OotL0 10 Warning Signs of Early Alzheimer's Disease – HOP ML Podcast Better Health While Aging Jun 29, 2022 All Episodes: Dr Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH – Better Health While Aging Wondering how to know whether someone might have Alzheimer’s disease? In this episode, geriatrician Leslie Kernisan, MD, goes beyond the usual 10 warning signs and covers 10 signs and symptoms that are red flags for her, when it comes to spotting early Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia #memoryloss #aging #alzheimer Learn about signs like accusations, denying difficulties, anosognosia (also known as lack of insight), delusions, and more. Read more: https://betterhealthwhileaging.net/8-... Get ongoing guidance from Dr. K by joining the Helping Older Parents Membership: https://betterhealthwhileaging.mykaja... Register for our free webinar, How to Help Your Aging Parent with Memory Loss Be Safer (Even If They're Resisting Your Help): https://betterhealthwhileaging.mykaja... Useful resource from the Alzheimer’s Association: https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dement... These warning signs can be early Alzheimer’s, or another form of dementia. But they can also be caused by other problems affecting brain function in older adults. Learn what warning signs to look for, if you’re concerned about possible Alzheimer’s, and what to do if they are present. Subscribe to the Channel: / @betterhealthwhileaging Video Chapters: 00:00 Early Signs of Alzheimer's Disease 00:39 Most common warning signs of early Alzheimer’s disease 01:59 Poor short-term memory 02:43 Repeating the same stories (or questions) 04:04 Why repeating happens in early Alzheimer’s 04:48 Difficulty with Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) 05:58 Unaware of or denying difficulties or mistakes 07:26 Accusing others 08:50 Developing delusions (false beliefs) 09:49 Developing hallucinations 10:28 Getting lost while driving or walking 10:49 Trouble with speech and language 11:38 Aphasia – trouble producing or understanding language 12:21 Uncharacteristic behaviors and/or changes in personality 13:29 Common early warning signs of Alzheimer’s & Dementia 13:56 What if you’ve noticed your older parent have memory problems LEARN – ONLINE COURSES: Memory Loss & Safety: How to Have Better Talks & Fewer Fights With Your Aging Parent Free Training: https://betterhealthwhileaging.mykaja... Get Dr. K’s expert guidance on how & when to step in, to help a parent with memory loss: https://betterhealthwhileaging.net/ed... Choose any playlist to watch: / betterhealthwhileaging . Especially take a look at: Helping Older Parents with Memory Loss: • Helping Older Parents with Memory Los... Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH, is a practicing geriatrician and the founder of the popular aging health website and podcast BetterHealthWhileAging.net, which she created to help families and older adults learn better ways to manage aging health challenges. Additionally, Leslie Kernisan works as a Clinical Instructor in the Division of Geriatrics at UCSF. Dr. K is particularly interested in the practical issues that families face when assisting aging parents, such as how to help them age in place. She has been running “Helping Older Parents” online courses and group coaching programs since 2018, and is the author of the book “When Your Aging Parent Needs Help: A geriatrician's step-by-step guide to memory loss, resistance, safety worries, and more.” https://betterhealthwhileaging.net/ed... WATCH NEXT: Episode #1 – Is Memory Loss Normal in Aging? HOP ML Podcast: • Is Memory Loss Normal in Aging? Helpi... Episode #2 – 10 Causes of Memory Loss in Old Age • 10 Causes of Memory Loss in Old Age –... Episode #3 – MCI, Alzheimer's and Dementia. What's the Difference? • MCI, Alzheimer's and Dementia. What's... Episode #4 – What are ADLs and IADLs: • What are ADLs and IADLs – HOP ML Podcast Episode #5 – How ADLs and IADLs change in early Alzheimer's: • How ADLs and IADLs change in early Al... _____ Dr. Kernisan's website, podcast, and YouTube channel all provide easy-to-follow instructions on how to deal with common health issues that affect the elderly. If you detect Alzheimer’s disease symptoms, go ahead and assist your parent in obtaining an appropriate medical assessment. In this scenario, your parent and family can determine the source of the memory loss or other symptoms discussed in this episode. Please share it: 10 Warning Signs of Early Alzheimer's.... Disclaimer: The material on the Better Health While Aging Youtube channel, including any exchanges in the comments section, is for informational and educational purposes only. Please see the full disclaimer for more information: https://betterhealthwhileaging.net/di...