Alzheimers Disease Essay -- Alzheimers Disease Essays

We be currently living in the age of technology. Our advancements in thepast few decades overshadow everything learned in the last 2000 years. With theelimination of many diseases through effective cures and treatments, Canadianscan expect to live a oftentimes longer life then that of their grandparents. In 1900about 4% of the Canadian population was over the age of 65. In 1989 that determinetripled to 12% and the government expects that figure to rise to 23% by the year2030 (Medical,1991,p.13). This increase has brought with it a large increase indiseases associated with old age. Alzheimers dementia (AD) is one of the mostcommon and feared diseases afflicting the venerable community. AD, once thought tobe a natural part of aging, is a severely debilitating form of mental dementia.Although some other types of dementia are curable or effectively treatable,there is currently no cure for the Alzheimer variety.A general overview of Alzheimers disease including the clinicaldescription , diagnosis, and progression of symptoms, helps one to further visualise the treatment and care of patients, the scope of the problem, andcurrent research.The clinical definition of dementia is "a declension in intellectualperformance that involves, but is not contain to, a loss in at least 2 of thefollowing areas language, judgement, memory, visual or depth perception, orjudgement interfering with daily activities" (Institute,1996, p.4).The sign cause of AD symptoms is a result of the progressivedeterioration of brain cells (neurons) in the noetic cortex of the brain. Thisarea of the brain, which is the largest and uppermost portion, controls all ourthought processes, movement, speech, and senses. This deterioration initiallystarts in the area of the cortex that is associated with memory and thenprogresses into other areas of the cortex, then into other areas of the brainthat control bodily function. The death of these cells causes an interruption ofthe electrochemical signals between neurons that are a key to cognitive as wellas bodily functioning.Currently AD can only be corroborate at autopsy. After death the examinedbrain of an Alzheimer victim shows two distinct characteristics. The first isthe presence of neuritic plaques in the cerebral cortex and other areas of thebrain including cerebral blood vessels.... ...988).Understanding Alzheimers disease.New York Scribners.Brassard, Daniel.(1993).Alzheimers Disease.Ottawa Library of Parliament,Science andTechnology Division.Brown, Phyllida.(1992, November 7).Alzheimers May Not be Linked to Aluminum.NewScientistSupplement,p.6.Carlton University Department of Health SciencesFreenet.(1996).Internet.httpwww.nct.carltonca/fp/social.services/alzheimer/disease.dirEvans, Denis, et al.(1989).Prevalence of Alzheimers Disease in a confederationPopulation ofOlder Persons.Journal of the American Medical Association,272(15),1152.Institute for Brain Aging.(1996).Internet.httpwww.128.200.55.17/aboutad.htmlMedi cal Research Council of Canada.(1991).Presidents Report 1989-1990.Myers, David.(1996).Exploring Psychology.New York Worth.Pollen, Daniel.(1990).Hannahs Heirs The Quest For the Genetic Origins ofAlzheimersDisease.LondonOxford University Press.Statement on Use of Apolipoprotein E Testing for AlzheimersDisease.(1996).American College of Medical Genetics/American Society of HumanGenetics Working Group on ApoE and AlzheimersDisease.Internet.httpwww.faseb.org/genetics/asng/policy/pot

Free Essays - Response to Kingstons Woman Warrior :: Maxine Hong Kingston Woman Warrior Essays

A Response to Kingstons Woman Warrior   Sometimes, I must admit, I look at my mother and call into question where she is coming from, what in the world she is thinking, and why does she act the way she does.  I can not possibly be manage her because, as I enunciate myself, if I catch on to her weird behavior now, I will be able to catch it in myself before it is too late.  The funny social function is that I am sure that she did and still does the same thing in regards to her own mother.  What is even worse is that I see my mother becoming like her own mother, despite my mothers hopes that she is not like my grandmother.  Does this, then, mean that I am going to be like my mother or that I am already like her?  Why does this thought frighten me?     Kingston herself seems to be struggling with these questions as she writes The Woman Warrior.  In the chapter At the Western Palace she is writing generally from her mothers perspective an d, through this process, perhaps learning more almost the way in which she behaved as a child towards her mother.  Her mother frequently tries to compliment her children yet all that they do is run away, leave to go to another room.  It is as if they can not be bothered by their own mothers words, the pride that she has for them.  or else of reveling in her words and love, they want to hide, to protect themselves from her words, from having to deal with her.     What must it have been like for Kingston to have to write this about herself, to realize the ways in which her words and actions have distanced herself from her mother?  But then Kingstons own words continue to make the mother seem like the outsider, the one who was different from everyone else, make her mother appear again as the one who is the ghost.  The children, even her own husband, merely appeared to humor her, making no effort to want to learn about the Chinese culture and therefo re not caring to know about their own mother.  How often have we done the same with our own mothers, not bothering to jaw to her, merely humoring her because we can not be bothered to make the time to really care about what she wants?