Alzheimer’s disease progresses differently in each person who suffers from it. Symptoms change from individual to individual and may happen at completely different times. Alzheimer’s disease can last as long as twenty years, so the distinct stages of the illness should be understood.
Understanding of these stages can help you in recognising what to expect and the way to provide necessary, effective care for an Alzheimer’s disease patient. Each one of the stages of Alzheimer’s disease will cause changes in everyday activities, behavior, mood, memory and thought processes. There are lots of steps that may be used to manage the symptoms successfully and help the subject live a more productive life.
Alzheimer’s and Functional Assessment
Dr. Reisberg and associates developed The Functional Assessment Staging (FAST) which divides the progression of Alzheimer’s disease under seven major headings:
Stage One:
Stage one is described as an ordinary adult with no decline in function or memory.
Stage Two:
This describes an ordinary older adult who has some functional decline. You will notice they protest of memory loss and begin forgetting names of loved ones. Occasionally this may be mistaken for an indication of natural aging instead of the start of dementia.
Stage Three:
This stage also involves the early indications of Alzheimer’s disease. The evidence of the illness now become more conspicuous. Uneasiness regularly becomes a main feature as the individual becomes conscious of their symptoms and their situation. Often the person goes into denial at this stage.
The Alzheimer’s patient may begin getting lost while travelling to an unfamiliar area. If they’re still working their associates may notice a lower performance in their work. The issue in word finding and recollecting names of newly introduced people, objects, and places becomes conspicuous to those close to them.
You will also notice they lose the power to remember information from a recently read book. Misplacing or losing valuable objects is also very common together with the inability to focus efficiently.
Stage Four:
Stage 4 can be depicted as mild Alzheimer’s disease. The person now starts to require assistance with complex jobs like handling finances. You’ll notice they have issues recalling parts of their lives and events they’ve taken part in. Often at this stage sufferers have difficulty concentrating and travelling. Again denial and low grade depression become key symptoms. Regularly the person will avoid working with difficult or challenging scenarios.
Stage Five:
Stage 5 can be portrayed as moderate Alzheimer’s disease. The subject can’t cope without help.
They are going to require help selecting suitable garments to wear and there’s now some disorientation in time. You’ll notice that when queried, they’ll be unable to recollect significant information about their current lives, though they can still recall basic information about themselves and their family.
Stage Six:
Stage 6 is described as moderately severe Alzheimer’s disease. By this stage, the person starts to forget big quantities of data about themselves and their environment. You will notice they forget the name of their spouses, or they may need help with dressing, showering correctly, and toileting. Frequently in this stage, urinary incontinence and upset sleeping patterns become conspicuous. Personality and emotional changes now become more obvious. This could be in the shape of obsessive behavior or delusions. You will notice acute uneasiness and often violence. Fecal incontinence may start.
Stage Seven:
Stage 7 is sometimes known as severe Alzheimer’s disease and the person’s capability to communicate correctly becomes restricted to roughly 6 or 7 words. Intelligible vocabulary is frequently limited to a single word. The power to walk, sit up, and smile – and ultimately even the ability to hold up their head – also deteriorate and ultimately is lost. The brain now seems to fail as it is now incapable of telling the body what to do.