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What are the symptoms and early signs of Alzheimer’s Disease?

By: Bob Demarco | Alzheimer’s Reading Room

Most of the Alzheimer’s caregivers I know can look back and identify symptoms and behaviors that they now know were early signs of Alzheimer’s or a related dementia.

The sooner that Alzheimer’s is diagnosed the better the potential outcome. A failure to spot Alzheimer’s early can be disastrous.

10 Symptoms of Dementia and Early Stage Alzheimer’s

1. Diminished short-term memory
2. Misplacing belongings in odd places; losing valuable belongings, like wallet or purse
3. Difficulty finding the right word: “Tip of the tongue” syndrome
4. Person seems “not himself” and shows uncharacteristic behaviors
5. Lapses in judgment
6. Difficulty with mental arithmetic and handling money
7. Disorientation in unfamiliar places or situations
8. May become apathetic or withdrawn, avoiding social situations
9. More difficulty with routine tasks at work or at home, or may take longer to complete tasks
10. Irritation or anger in response to increasing memory lapses

Specific Examples of the Symptoms and Signs of Alzheimer’s

1. Asks the same question repeatedly within the same conversationPuts car keys away in refrigerator
2. Unable to recall word for “car” and then says in frustration, “The thing you drive to work in.”
3. A normally shy person becomes uncharacteristically outgoing or talkative at a family gathering
4. Agrees to buy services or products he/she doesn’t need from telephone sales person
5. Finds it difficult to balance checkbook or figure out correct amount of money to pay for an item while shopping
6. Forgets to eat, skips meals, or eats the same food every meal

Source: John Hopkins, Memory, Health Alert

We have many people on this list that were fortunate and were put on the combination of Aricept and Namenda at the time of their diagnosis. All of these persons seem to be functioning quite well.

It is my belief that all Alzheimer’s caregivers should discuss the combination therapy with their doctor.

Personal care doctors are not good at diagnosing Alzheimer’s and neither are spouses or children. This happens because Alzheimer’s is usually hard to diagnose until a “big problem” or “big event” occurs that calls for an investigation into that problem or event.

Neither the doctors, spouses or children are to be blamed for the inability to spot Alzheimer’s early. Alzheimer’s disease, in most cases, sneaks in and is sinister in its ability to hide.

Alzheimer’s can confuse anyone and everyone. It can even confuse a veteran Alzheimer’s caregiver --

Thanks to Bob Demarco, founder Alzheimer’s Reading Room, cared for his mother for 8 years. ■