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Alzheimer's Disease
Reviewed by Medicinsk Expert•Last updated: 2026-10-22•Older Adults

Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, gradually impairing memory, thinking, and daily function over many years.

Overview

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia among older people. Dementia is a brain disorder that seriously affects thinking and memory skills. If you have AD, it can impair your ability to reason or learn new skills until it becomes difficult to complete daily activities.

AD begins slowly over many years. It first involves the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. It may be mistaken for normal memory changes with aging. However, AD is not a normal part of aging. The brain changes from the disease lead to symptoms that get worse over time.

Symptoms

People with AD may have trouble remembering recent events or the names of people they know. Behavior may vary from person to person and day to day. AD progresses in stages. Late-onset AD occurs in adults aged 65 and older, which is when most people develop the disease. Early-onset AD happens before age 65, which is not common.

Some symptoms of AD can include:

  • Getting lost in familiar places
  • Repeating the same question
  • Not recognizing family members
  • Having trouble speaking, reading, or writing
  • Not taking care of yourself, such as not bathing or eating poorly

In AD, over time, symptoms get worse. Later on, people with AD may become anxious or aggressive or wander away from home. Eventually, they need total care. This can cause great stress for family members who must care for them.

Risk Factors

Researchers don't fully understand what causes AD. Age is the biggest risk factor. Your risk is also higher if a family member has had the disease. Although people who develop Alzheimer's don't always have a history of the disease in their families.

Researchers believe the causes of AD may be a combination of age-related changes in the brain, along with genetic, health, and lifestyle factors. Some medical conditions that are associated with a higher risk of AD include:

  • Hearing loss
  • Depression
  • Mild cognitive impairment
  • Concussion or other traumatic brain injury (TBI)

A related problem, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), causes more memory problems than normal for people of the same age. Many, but not all, people with MCI will develop AD.

Diagnosis

Some health conditions can cause memory loss or symptoms like AD. Talk with your health care provider if you're having noticeable changes in your memory. To determine if your symptoms are related to AD and not normal aging or another health condition, your provider may:

  • Review your medical history and any medicines you're taking
  • Conduct tests to check your memory, thinking, and problem-solving skills
  • Ask about changes in behavior or personality
  • Do tests to rule out any medical or mental health conditions
  • Refer you to a provider that specializes in caring for older adults
  • Recommend a neurologist, a doctor who specializes in treating diseases of the brain and nervous system

Treatment

No treatment can stop the disease. However, some medicines may help keep symptoms from getting worse for a limited time.

Prevention

You can't change some risk factors, like your age. But changing certain lifestyle factors may promote your brain health and help you live a healthier lifestyle overall. This can include:

  • Manage chronic health issues such as high blood pressure or hearing loss
  • Get regular physical activity
  • Eat a healthy diet
  • Quit smoking (or don't start)
  • Get enough sleep
  • Develop strong social connections

Frequently Asked Questions

s cognitive impairment progresses, household risks multiply. Essential safety adjustments include installing childproof safety locks on exterior doors to prevent wandering, removing throw rugs to eliminate fall hazards, and lowering water heater thermostats below 120 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent accidental scalding. Families should also install safety shutoffs on cooking stoves, securely lock away medications and cleaning chemicals, and register the patient with a medical ID service or utilize wearable GPS tracking devices.
Medications like cholinesterase inhibitors (donepezil, rivastigmine) and NMDA receptor antagonists (memantine) do not reverse brain damage or halt disease progression; instead, they temporarily help balance brain neurotransmitters to stabilize thinking, daily functioning, or behavioral symptoms for months to a few years. Newer monoclonal antibody therapies (such as lecanemab and donanemab) target and clear amyloid plaques in early-stage disease to moderately slow the rate of decline, but they require periodic intravenous infusions and frequent MRI scans to monitor for potential side effects like brain swelling or microhemorrhages.
Routine genetic testing is not typically recommended for late-onset Alzheimer's disease because the presence of the APOE-e4 gene variant only indicates an increased risk, not a certainty of developing the disorder. However, for rare early-onset Alzheimer's disease affecting individuals under age 60 with a strong multi-generational family pattern, genetic testing for deterministic mutations in the APP, PSEN1, or PSEN2 genes can be performed alongside comprehensive genetic counseling to assess inherited risk.
Specialized diagnostic tools can now detect the biological hallmarks of Alzheimer's before severe brain loss occurs. These include amyloid and tau positron emission tomography (PET) scans, which visualize protein plaques in the brain, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis obtained via lumbar puncture to measure amyloid and phosphorylated tau ratios. High-sensitivity blood biomarker tests measuring specific forms of tau protein (such as p-tau217) are increasingly utilized in specialist clinics to assist in early detection.
Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus brings together authoritative health information from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations.

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