What is the prognosis for Alzheimer disease (AD)?
Alzheimer’s disease initially associates with the impairment of memory that gets worse with the progression of disease. With the passage of time, Alzheimer’s patients can also experience depression, insomnia, anxiety, paranoia, and agitation. Moreover, with the progression of disease, the patients living with Alzheimer’s come to a point in their lives where they require constant help from either a family member or some external help to get going through the day. The patients of Alzheimer’s might require assistance with everyday activities such as dressing, toileting, and bathing thus making them dependent on others. If you are starting to suspect any symptoms of alzheimer’s disease in you or in your loved ones then it is a good idea to get a medical advice so that the prognosis rate for alzheimer’s is higher for you.
Also, it is important to note that the time from the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s to death varies quite individually. The time might vary from as little as 3 years of life to as long as 10 years or even more in some cases. Those patients with an early onset of Alzheimer’s disease tend to have the possible little time to live as there is more rapid and aggressive course of Alzheimer’s progression comparing to the ones with late onset. Consequently, difficulties with swallowing and even walking start to develop. However, when the Alzheimer’s patients are facing swallowing problems, the doctors shift them onto gastrointestinal tubes for feeding. The difficulty in swallowing might also cause aspiration pneumonia, which can be a life-threatening situation for the patient.
According to a recent cohort study involving a large group of Alzheimer’s disease patients, the evolution and course of Alzheimer’s disease appears to vary among each individual with higher chances of institutionalization and death in almost 12% of all the Alzheimer’s patients. While, the cognitive decline can be quite fast in majority of the Alzheimer’s disease patients while only one fourth of the participants appear to have a relatively normal condition. The study also suggests that almost two thirds of the cohort suffer from significant and moderate type of evolution of Alzheimer’s symptoms. There is a huge need to do more research to understand the evolution of Alzheimer’s in patients by considering the variation patterns. The rate of evolution of Alzheimer’s disease varies quite widely and it directly determines the prognosis and life expectancy for the patient.
The prognosis for Alzheimer’s disease is an average of as minimum as 3 years and as long as 11 years after the diagnosis and treatment plan. However, it is a huge possibility that some people can live longer than 20 years after their initial diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. The prognosis of Alzheimer’s disease typically depends on the age and the progression of the disease after the diagnosis. Unfortunately, Alzheimer’s disease comes as the sixth most commonly occurring cause of death in America. Death is quite evident as a result of all the other medical complications that might arise due to Alzheimer’s disease. For instance, there are chances of dehydration, malnutrition, and aspiration pneumonia if Alzheimer’s patient face any difficult in swallowing. Some risk factors including hypertension that goes without treatment links to the faster rate of alzheimer’s disease progression.