This week we speak with Dr. Lance J. Wright  about Alzheimer’s.

Question: One of my parents seems to be becoming forgetful and confused.  How does one tell if this is Alzheimer’s disease?

The first step is to see if the patient has the correct symptoms.  The second step is to see if the patient is in the proper age group.  Alzheimer’s disease is almost exclusively a disease of the elderly and on very rare occasions a disease of the middle aged.  It virtually never affects younger people.  Beyond this, the diagnosis is made by ruling out other potential causes for the symptoms.  This is very important since some of the other conditions which might cause similar symptoms are completely curable.  The medical evaluation for Alzheimer’s disease, therefore, consists largely of an evaluation to rule out other things which might be masquerading as Alzheimer’s disease.  If nothing else is found, and the patient has the proper symptoms and is in the proper age group, then Alzheimer’s disease is the diagnosis.  This simple approach is really very accurate.

You can find Dr. Wright at  Semmes-Murphey Neurologic & Spine Institute, online at www.semmes-murphey.com or by calling  901.522.4949