Dementia Diseases

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Lifestyle and Diseases 生活習慣と病気 1 Lifestyle As countries develop, become more industrialized and people live longer, lifestyle becomes a major factor for chronic diseases -- including obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, dementia, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and depression (slide 1). As life expectancy increased by 30 years in the 20th century in developed countries, the major causes of death changed from infection to chronic diseases. Behavioral patterns are the major determinant of health, and they contribute to premature death (slide 2). The available health care system also has a significant impact on premature death, even in developed countries. For example, because people who lack health insurance are unable…show more content…
Memory is the most common cognitive ability lost with dementia. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) (slide 71) is the most common cause of dementia in western countries and Japan, representing more than half of demented patients. Vascular disease is the second most common cause of dementia in the U.S. and Japan. Most common forms of dementia are progressive, and currently there is no effective treatment to stop or reverse the progression of the disease. Incidence of most dementia increases with age. Accordingly the number of dementia patients is increasing rapidly in developed countries, and the impact of this disease on society is tremendous. Approximately 10% of all persons over the age of 70 have significant memory loss, and in more than half the cause is Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD most often presents with subtle onset of memory loss followed by a slowly progressive dementia that follows a course of several years. Pathologically, there is diffuse atrophy of the cerebral cortex with secondary enlargement of the ventricular system. Microscopically, there are neuritic plaques containing A amyloid (slide 72) and neurofibrillary tangles (slide 73) in neuronal cytoplasm. In the early stages of the disease, the memory loss may go unrecognized or be ascribed to benign forgetfulness. Once the memory loss begins to affect day-to-day activity or falls below 1.5 standard deviations from normal on standardized memory tasks, the disease is defined as mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Slowly the cognitive problems begin to interfere with daily activities, such as keeping track of finances, following instructions on the job, driving, shopping, and housekeeping (slides 74-77). In the middle stages of AD, the patient is unable to work, is easily lost and confused, and requires daily supervision. Social graces, routine behavior, and superficial
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