Dementia has many faces, can occur in different phases of life, can be slow or fast. There are also many different causes and dementia research is still in its infancy. In medicine, dementia is a generic term for progressive diseases of the brain. There are at least 60 subspecies alone.
The most common form is "Alzheimer's dementia", named after the Würzburg neurologist Alois Alzheimer, who first documented the course of the disease in 1906. This form of dementia is characterized by progressive brain shrinkage. The exact diagnosis of "Alzheimer's disease" cannot be made unequivocally during one's lifetime - it is therefore always only a suspected diagnosis.
More and more studies indicate that there are multiple factors that influence the probability of dementia and the course of the disease. An important factor in the process of prevention and cure is certainly the earliest possible diagnosis of dementia. An early diagnosis increases the chance of a successful therapy, therefore it is important to show in which steps and stages the disease progresses and which early warning signals are. Until now, the diagnosis has always been a suspected or excluded diagnosis.
Depending on the origin in literature, the course of the disease is either divided into three phases or into seven stages. In the early stages, the disease is often completely reversible.
More...Alzheimer's research has so far focused on the molecular processes in the brain that are associated with a change in brain structure. Viruses & bacteria are increasingly coming into the focus of research. The most important puzzle stone - the western lifestyle - receives far too little attention.
More about causes..
Here we collect interesting studies and publications on various related research topics. Also for you a source for your own further education.
Research and links
