Alzheimer’s is an epidemic. Every minute or so—in fact, before you get to the end of this page—someone in this country will develop Alzheimer’s. Millions of people already have been formally diagnosed. Millions more are undiagnosed—or diagnosed with some form of dementia that could actually be Alzheimer’s. And with the 78 million baby boomers now moving into their later years, the cost of Alzheimer’s to American society is expected to be $20 trillion between now and the year 2050.1 That’s right—$20 trillion.

There’s no doubt about it. We are in the midst of a national emergency, and we’re woefully unprepared.* excerpt form the Schriver Report

The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Takes on Alzheimer’s is a collaborative research effort by California first lady Maria Shriver and the Alzheimer’s Association that calls on society and government leaders to address the needs of patients and caregivers, fund more research into treatment for Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases and help people prepare for the possibility of a future Alzheimer’s diagnosis. The report’s main focus is the impact the disease has on women.

“Alzheimer’s is a woman’s disease that’s dramatically changing the way we live as families,” Shriver said. “Sixty percent of people with Alzheimer’s are women, and 60 percent of the caretaking is done by women.” link to continue reading
Source: ABC News

Alzheimer’s disease is not the only type of dementia. Two particular forms are dementia with Lewy bodies and Parkinson’s disease dementia. In both forms, the diagnosis is of vital importance because the treatment for these dementias differs from that for Alzheimer’s dementia, as Brit Mollenhauer and co-authors explain in the dementia theme issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2010; 107[39]: 684-91). [continue reading…]

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