Blog

Alzheimer’s Disease -What is it?

Alzheimer’s is a type of dementia that affects memory, thinking and behavior. In 1906, German physician Dr. Alois Alzheimer first described “a peculiar disease” — one of profound memory loss and microscopic brain changes — a disease we now know as Alzheimer’s.

The Symptoms …

The most common early symptom of Alzheimer’s is difficulty remembering newly learned information because Alzheimer’s changes typically begin in the part of the brain that affects learning.

As Alzheimer’s advances through the brain it leads to increasingly severe symptoms, including disorientation, mood and behavior changes; deepening confusion about events, time and place; unfounded suspicions about family, friends and professional caregivers; more serious memory loss and behavior changes; and difficulty speaking, swallowing and walking.

Don’t  Misunderstood Alzheimer’s and dementia:

Alzheimer’s is not a normal part of aging. It is not just a disease of old age.

Alzheimer’s is a specific disease. Dementia is not.

Dementia is caused by damage to brain cells that affects their ability to communicate, which can affect thinking, behavior and feelings. Whereas Alzheimer’s changes typically begin in the part of the brain that affects learning. Alzheimer’s is a degenerative brain disease that is caused by complex brain changes following cell damage.

Dementia describes a group of symptoms associated with a decline in memory, reasoning or other thinking skills. Where Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for 60-80% of dementia cases.

The Stages /Progression:

Alzheimer’s disease typically progresses slowly in three general stages: early, middle and late (sometimes referred to as mild, moderate and severe in a medical context).

Early-stage Alzheimer’s (mild)

In the early stage of Alzheimer’s, a person may function independently.

Common difficulties include:

1. Coming up with the right word or name.
2. Remembering names when introduced to new people.
3. Having difficulty performing tasks in social or work settings.
4. Forgetting material that was just read.
5. Losing or misplacing a valuable object.
6. Experiencing increased trouble with planning or organizing.

Middle-stage Alzheimer’s (moderate)

Middle-stage Alzheimer’s is typically the longest stage and can last for many years .

Symptoms, which vary from person to person, may include:

1. Being forgetful of events or personal history.
2. Feeling moody or withdrawn, especially in socially or mentally challenging situations.
3. Being unable to recall information about themselves like their address or telephone number, and the high school or college they attended.
4. Experiencing confusion about where they are or what day it is.
5. Requiring help choosing proper clothing for the season or the occasion.
6. Having trouble controlling their bladder and bowels.
7. Experiencing changes in sleep patterns, such as sleeping during the day and becoming restless at night.
8. Showing an increased tendency to wander and become lost.
9. Demonstrating personality and behavioral changes, including suspiciousness and delusions or compulsive, repetitive behavior like hand-wringing or tissue shredding.

Late-stage Alzheimer’s (severe)

In the final stage of the disease, dementia symptoms are severe. Individuals lose the ability to respond to their environment, to carry on a conversation and, eventually, to control movement.

1. Require around-the-clock assistance with daily personal care.
2. ​Lose awareness of recent experiences as well as of their surroundings.
3. Experience changes in physical abilities, including walking, sitting and, eventually, swallowing
4. Have difficulty communicating.
5. Become vulnerable to infections, especially pneumonia.

The Actual Scenario Inside The Brain:

Alzheimer’s Changes the Whole Brain. Alzheimer’s disease leads to nerve cell death and tissue loss throughout the brain. Over time, the brain shrinks dramatically, affecting nearly all its functions.

Diagnosis:

To diagnose Alzheimer’s, physicians may use medical history, mental status tests, physical and neurological exams, diagnostic tests and brain imaging.

A standard medical workup for Alzheimer’s disease often includes structural imaging with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT). These tests are primarily used to rule out other conditions that may cause symptoms similar to Alzheimer’s but require different treatment.

Homoeopathic Approaches:

There is NO SPECIFIC REMEDY for Alzheimer’s disease. Totality Of Symptoms Of individual patient is the way of treatment.

Here the most relevant rubrics for treating Alzheimer’s disease with their gradations (According to Kent’s & Boerick’s Repertory) below:

MEMORY, weakness of,

• letters, for the names of the : Lyc.
• names, for proper : Anac., bell., cann-i., chin-s., chlor., croc., crot-h., fl-ac., glon., guai., kali-br., lach., lith., lyc., med., merc., nat-a., olnd., ptel., puls., rhus-t., sec., spig., stram., sulph., syph.
• occurrences of the day : Nat-m., ph-ac., plb., rhus-t.
• periodical : Carb-v., nat-m.
• persons, for : Acet-ac., agar., ail., anac., bell., cedr., cham., chlor., croc., hyos., merc., nux-v., op., stram., thuj., verat.
• places, for : Merc., nux-m., psor.
• read, for what has : Ambr., anac., arn., ars-m., bell., cann-i., carb-ac., chlor., coff., colch., corn., guai., ham., Hell., hipp., hydr., hyos., jug-c., lac-c., lac-d., Lach., lyc., med., merc., nat-c., nat-m., nux-m., olnd., onos., op., ph-ac., phos., psor., Staph., tep., viol-o.
• said, for what has : Arn., bar-c., cann-i., carb-an., carb-v., colch., croc., Hell., hep., Hyos., kali-n., lach., med., merc., mez., mur-ac., nux-m., psor., rhod., stram., sulph., tep., verat.
• say, for what is about to : Am-c., arg-n., arn., atro., bar-c., cann-i., cann-s., carb-an., card-m., colch., Hell., hydr., hyper., lil-t., med., merc., mez., nat-m., nux-m., onos., podo., rhod., stram., sulph., thuj., verat.
• sudden and periodical : Calc-s., carb-v.
• thought, for what has just : Acon., agar., alum., anac., bell., cann-i., cocc., colch., fl-ac., hyos., med., nat-m., ran-s., rob., staph., stram., verb.
• time, for : Merc.
• words, for : Agar., anac., arg-n., arn., Bar-c., cact., cann-i., carb-s., cham., cimic., cocc., con., crot-h., cupr., dulc., ham., hell., kali-br., kali-c., kali-p., lach., lil-t., lyc., lyss., med., nat-m., nux-v., ph-ac., Plb., puls., sulph., thuj.
• write, for what is about to : Cann-i., colch., croc., dirc., nat-m., nux-m., rhus-t.
• written, for what he has : Calad., cann-i., nux-m.

Forgetful, weak or lost — Absinth., Acon., Æth., Agn., Alum., Ambra., Anac., Anhal., Arg. n., Arn., Aur., Azar., Bar. c., Calad., Calc. c., Calc. p., Camph., Can ind., Carbo v., Cocc., Con., Glycerin, Ichthy., Kali br., Kali c., Kali p., Lac c., Lach., Lecith., Lyc., Med., Merc., Nat. c., Nat. m., Nit. ac., Nux m., Nux v., Oleand., Op., Phos. ac., Phos., Picr. ac., Plumb. m., Rhod., Rhus t., Selen., Sep., Sil., Sul., Syph., Tellur., Thyr., Zinc. m., Zinc. p., Zinc. picr.

Familiar streets [cannot remember] — Can. ind., Glon., Lach., Nux m.
Names [cannot remember] — Anac., Bar. ac., Chlorum, Euonym., Guaiac., Hep., Lyc., Med., Sul., Syph., Xerophyl.
Right words (amnesic aphasia, paraphasia) [cannot remember] — Agar., Alum., Anac., Arag., Arg. n., Arn., Calc. c., Calc. p., Can. ind., Cham., Cinch., Diosc., Dulc., Kali br., Lac c., Lil. t., Lyc., Nux m., Phos. ac., Plumb. m., Sumb., Xerophyl.

Difficulty or inability of fixing attention — Æth., Agar., Agn., Aloe, Alum., Anac., Apis, Arag., Argn. n., Bapt., Bar. c., Can. ind., Caust., Con., Fagop., Gels., Glon., Glycerin, Helleb., Ichthy., Indol, Irid., Lac c., Lyc., Op., Nat. c., Nux m., Nux v., Phos. ac., Phos., Picr. ac., Pituit., Sep., Sil., Staph., Sul., Syph., Xerophyl., Zinc. m.

Omits letters, words — Benz. ac., Cereus serp., Cham., Kali br., Lac c., Lach., Lyc., Meli., Nux m., Nux v.

Thoughts:

• Rapid — Anac., Bell., Can. ind., Cim., Cinch., Coff., Ign., Lac c., Lach., Physost.
• Slow — Agn., Caps., Carbo v., Lyc., Med., Nux m., Op., Phos. ac., Phos., Plumb., Sec., Thuya.
• Vanish while reading, talking, writing — Anac., Asar., Camph., Can. ind., Lach., Lyc., Nux m., Picr. ac., Staph.
• Unable to think — Abies n., Æth., Alum., Anac., Arg. n., Aur. m., Bapt., Calc. c., Can. ind., Caps., Con., Dig., Gels., Glycerin, Kali p., Lyc., Nat. c., Nat. m., Nux m., Nux v., Oleand., Petrol., Phos. ac., Phos., Picr. ac., Rhus t., Sep., Sil., Zinc. m.

IDEAS deficiency of :

Acet-ac., acon., agn., alum., am-c., anac., arg-n., asaf., asar., atro., aur., bar-c., bell., bov., caj., calc-p., calc., camph., cann-s., canth., carb-v., caust., cham., chin., cic., clem., cocc., coff., corn., croc., cupr., cycl., dig., glon., guai., Hell., hyos., ign., iod., ip., kali-br., kreos., lach., laur., lepi., lil-t., Lyc., meny., merc-c., merc., mez., nat-c., nat-m., nat-p., nit-ac., nux-m., olnd., Op., petr., Ph-ac., Phos., plb., rhus-t., sep., sil., Staph., sulph., tarent., thuj., valer., verat., zinc.

MOOD, changeable, variable, etc. :

Acon., agn., aloe., alum., ambr., anac., ant-t., apis., arg-m., arg-n., arn., ars-i., ars., asaf., asar., aur-m., aur., bar-c., bell., bism., bor., bov., bry., bufo., calc-s., calc., cann-s., caps., carb-an., carb-s., carl., caust., chin., cocc., con., croc., cupr., cycl., dig., dros., ferr-ar., ferr., gels., graph., hyos., Ign., iod., kali-c., kali-p., kali-s., lac-c., lach., lachn., Lyc., mag-c., meny., merc., mez., morph., nat-c., nat-m., nit-ac., Nux-m., op., petr., phel., phos., plan., plat., psor., Puls., ran-b., rat., sabad., sanic., Sars., seneg., sep., sil., spig., spong., stann., staph., stram., sul-ac., sulph., tarent., thuj., tub., valer., verat., verb., Zinc.

Confusion Of Mind, Changeble:

Absin., acet-ac., acon., act-sp., aesc., aeth., agar., agn., ail., all-c., aloe., alum., am-c., am-m., ambr., anac-oc., anac., ant-t., apis., apoc., aran., arg-m., arg-n., arn., ars-i., ars., asaf., asar., aspar., aur-m., aur., bapt., bar-c., bar-m., Bell., benz-ac.,berb., bism., bor., bov., brom., Bry., bufo., calad., calc-p., calc-s., Calc., camph., Cann-i., cann-s., canth., caps., carb-ac., carb-an., carb-o., carb-s., Carb-v., carl., caust., cham., chel., chin-a., chin-s., chin., chlol., chlor., cic., cimx., cina., cinnb., clem., coc-c., Cocc., coff., colch., coloc., com., con., cop., corn., croc., crot-c., crot-h., crot-t., cupr-ar., cupr., cur., cycl., dig., dios., dros., dulc., echi., ery-a., eug., eup-pur., euphr., eupi., fago., ferr-ar., ferr-p., ferr., fl-ac., gels., gent-l., gins., Glon., gran., graph., grat., hell., hep., hipp., hura., hydr-ac., hydr., hyos., hyper., ign., indg., iod., ip., jab., jatr., jug-c., kali-ar., kali-bi., kali-br., kali-c., kali-i., kali-n., kali-p., kali-s., kalm., kreos., lac-c., Lach., lact-ac., lact., laur., lec., led., lil-t., lob., lyc., mag-c., mag-m., mag-s., med., meli., merc-c., Merc., mez., morph., mosch., murx., myric., naja., nat-a., nat-c., Nat-m., nat-p., nat-s., nicc., nit-ac., Nux-m., Nux-v., olnd., Onos., Op., osm., par., Petr., ph-ac., phel., phos., phys., plan., plat., plb., psor., ptel., puls., ran-b., raph., rheum., rhod., Rhus-t., ruta., sabad., sabin., sal-ac., samb., sang., sars., sec., seneg., Sep., Sil., spig., spong., squil., stann., staph., stram., Stry., sulph., syph., tab., tarax., ter., teucr., ther., thuj., trom., valer., verat., verb., viol-o., vip., xan., zinc.

Indifference, Apathy, etc:

 Absin., acon., agar., agn., ail., alum., am-m., ambr., anac., ant-t., Apis., arg-n., arn., ars-i., ars., asaf., asar., aster., bapt., bar-c., bar-m., bell., berb., bism., bov., brom., bufo., calc-p., calc-s., calc., camph., cann-i., cann-s., caps., carb-an., carb-s., Carb-v., caust., cham., chel., chin-a., chin-s., Chin., cic., cimic., cina., clem., cocc., con., corn., croc., Crot-c., crot-h., cupr., cycl., cypr., dig., elaps., euphr., ferr-ar., ferr-i., ferr-p., ferr., fl-ac., gels., glon., graph., guai., gymn., Hell., helod., hep., hura., hyos., ign., iod., ip., jatr., kali-ar., kali-bi., kali-br., kali-c., kali-p., kali-s., lac-c., lach., laur., lepi., Lil-t., lyc., mag-m., manc., meli., meny., merc., Mez., mur-ac., naja., Nat-c., Nat-m., Nat-p., nit-ac., nux-m., nux-v., olnd., Onos., Op., petr., Ph-ac., Phos., phyt., pic-ac., Plat., plb., prun-s., psor., Puls., raph., rheum., rhod., rhus-t., rumx., ruta., sabad., sabin., sars., sec., sel., seneg., Sep., sil., spong., squil., stann., Staph., stram., sulph., tarent., ther., thuj., verat., verb., viol-t., xan., zinc., ziz.

Suspicious:

 Acon., ambr., anac., anan., ang., ant-c., arn., Ars., aur., bapt., Bar-c., bar-m., bell., bor., Bry., cact., calc-p., calc-s., Cann-i., canth., carb-s., Caust., Cench., cham., chin-a., chin., Cic., cimic., coca., cocc., con., crot-h., cupr., Dig., dros., graph., hell., hyos., ip., Kali-ar., kali-br., kali-p., Lach., Lyc., meli., meny., merc., mez., mur-ac., nat-a., nat-c., nat-p., nit-ac., nux-v., op., phos., plb., Puls., Rhus-t., ruta., sanic., sarr., Sec., sel., sep., sil., stann., staph., Stram., sul-ac., sul-i., Sulph., thuj., verat., viol-t.

• daytime : Merc.
• afternoon : Lach., nux-v.
• 3 to 8 p.m. : Cench.
• evening : Cench., lach.
• talking about her, that people are : Bar-c.
• walking, while : Anac.

DELUSIONS, imaginations, hallucinations, illusions :

Absin., acon., aeth., agar., ambr., anac., anan., ant-c., apis., arg-m., Arg-n., ars-i., ars., aur-m., aur., bapt., bar-c., Bell., bry., calc-s., calc., camph., Cann-i., cann-s., canth., carb-an., carb-v., caust., cench., chin-a., chin., cic., cimic., cina., Cocc., coff., colch., con., croc., crot-h., dulc., elaps., eup-pur., fl-ac., glon., gran., hell., hura., Hyos., Ign., iod., kali-ar., kali-p., lac-c., Lach., led., lyc., lyss., mag-m., med., merc., mur-ac., nat-p., nit-ac., nux-v., op., Petr., Ph-ac., phos., plat., plb., psor., puls., rhus-t., Sabad., samb., sec., sep., sil., spong., stann., staph., Stram., Sulph., tarent., ther., thuj., valer., verat., verb., viol-o., zinc.

Read also-Homoeopathy, an Overview

Read also-Arogya Sanjeevani Policy : Details of Health Insurance which covers Best in Homoeopathy and AYUSH treatment in 2020

Read also-Developmental Milestones, Delays And It’s Homoeopathic Approach