Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease Are you concerned that you or someone you know may have Alzheimer’s disease? Age is the most important risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease; the number of people with the disease doubles every 5 years beyond age 65. Alzheimer’s disease is NOT a normal part of aging. Alzheimer’s disease is characterized in the brain by abnormal clumps (amyloid plaques) and tangled bundles of fibers (neurofibrillary tangles) composed of misplaced proteins. When these proteins grow larger, they trigger an inflammatory reaction in the brain's immune system that begins to kill surrounding brain cells. This causes deterioration in certain areas of the brain that control thinking, communication, and behavior. Suspected causes of Alzheimer’s disease are being inv View the rest of this article