1. Where
can I get information on Alzheimer services and programs
in my community?
The
three levels of the Society -- national, provincial and
local -- work together to form a nationwide network of
services to help Canadians affected by Alzheimer's disease.
Your
local Alzheimer Society will have more specific information
on the resources available in your community. You can
find a listing of local Societies in our Contact
Our Offices section.
2. I'm
a student looking for information on Alzheimer's disease.
Can you help?
Whether
you're writing a report for high-school, a term paper
at university or working on a graduate program, we encourage
you to visit the Alzheimer's Disease and Research sections
of this site. We provide background information on the
disease, what we know about its causes, treatments and
drug research trials. For information on caregiving,
visit the Alzheimer
Care section. The Resources section
has a list of books, articles and videos that might be
helpful or check with your local
Alzheimer Society for more information.
3. When
the doctor talks about different stages of the disease,
what does she mean?
The
progression of Alzheimer's disease can be described as
a series of stages. Staging Alzheimer's disease gives people
with the disease, doctors and caregivers a general guide
to the pattern of the disease. This can help them make
care decisions throughout the course of the disease.
Whichever
staging system is used, or if none is used, it's important
to remember that the disease affects each person differently.
The order in which the symptoms appear and the length
of each stage will vary from person to person. There
is no clear line when one stage ends and another begins.
In many cases, stages will overlap.
Some
people experience many of the symptoms in each stage,
while others experience only a few. There may be fluctuations
from day to day with a person appearing more confused
one day, for example, and less so another.
To
read more about the three stages (early, middle, late)
or the seven stages described in the Global Deterioration
Scale, visit our Alzheimer's Disease section.
4. Is
the disease genetic? Can I inherit it?
There
are two types of Alzheimer's disease: Familial Autosomal
Dominant occurs in five to 10 per cent of cases and has
a genetic link. In order for this to occur, the disease
needs to be apparent over several generations of one
family.
The
second type, Sporadic Alzheimer's Disease, is more common
(90-95 per cent) and people with this form may or may
not have a family history of the disease. We provide
more information on:
5. Who
discovered Alzheimer's disease?
Alzheimer's disease was discovered by a German neurologist, Dr. Alois
Alzheimer, in 1906. He conducted his research on a 51-year-old
woman, Auguste D., a mentally ill woman who was admitted
to the asylum where Dr. Alzheimer worked. Dr. Alzheimer
not only studied the behaviour of this woman, but upon
her death, conducted an extensive autopsy to learn about
the changes that occurred in her brain. He first presented
his results to a group of psychiatrists in Germany in
1906. Dr. Alzheimer (b.1864-d.1915) became a professor
of neurology at Heidelberg University and University
Hospital in Breslau.
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