Quick Facts About Alzheimer’s Disease
The information in this article comes from the Alzheimer’s Association’s
What is Alzheimer’s disease?
Alzheimer’s disease is a type of brain disease caused by damage to nerve cells (neurons) in the brain
These neurons are essential to thinking, memory, language, and all human activity
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia
The risk factors include age, genetics, and family history
Approximately 6.7 million Americans are living with dementia.
More than 11 million Americans are unpaid caregivers.
Progression of Alzheimer’s disease
The Alzheimer’s disease continuum includes 3 phases:
Preclinical Alzheimer’s disease (no symptoms)
Mild cognitive impairment (mild symptoms that may not affect daily living)
Alzheimer’s dementia (mild, moderate, and severe)
The length of each phase depends on a person’s age, genetics, biological sex, and other factors.
Treatments for Alzheimer’s disease
There are 7 FDA-approved drugs, 5 of which aim to alleviate symptoms but don’t affect underlying brain changes
Two recently approved drugs target and affect the underlying disease process. These include lecanemab-irmb and aducanumab, both of which are for people who have mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease
Advances in the identification of biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease are enabling researchers to find people for clinical trials who may benefit from targeted therapies
Nondrug treatments, such as physical activity, memory exercises, or music and art therapy, may be effective for treating symptoms such as depression and sleep problems, among others
How Artcraft Can Help
We are committed to supporting our pharmaceutical partners in developing educational programs that enable families to cope with the many challenges of Alzheimer’s disease. Whether for recruitment and retention resources for clinical trials or support for brands, we create empathic and engaging solutions that are inclusionary and represent diverse populations while helping clients meet their goals.
See our previous blog articles on Alzheimer’s disease.
To learn more, contact us at info@artcrafthealth.com
About the Author
Lisa Moss Calderwood is Vice President/Copy Director at Artcraft Health.