HealthTree Blog

The symptoms of Alzheimer’s come on so gradually that it is often hard to distinguish what is truly Alzheimer’s, what is simply part of the natural aging process, and what may be a result of over-medicating, something that can often happen with a senior citizen.

For this reason, it is hard to determine which specific warning signs are definitely indicative of Alzheimer’s Disease. It is actually more a combination of things that leads to a diagnosis of this condition. For example, it is not unusual for anyone to forget the last place the car keys were seen. However, when car keys have been lost, but turn up in a place that one would not even associate with putting car keys—say, for instance, the refrigerator—this could be one of the warning signs of Alzheimer’s.

Language impairment, such as struggling to find the right word or substituting a word that does not fit with the sentence content or subject being discussed, can be another one of the warning signs. As Alzheimer’s progresses, a person may lose the ability to communicate at all.

Another warning sign of Alzheimer’s is unusual occurrences of mood swings. Again, these alone cannot be used to say specifically that the condition exists; rather, they must be taken in context with other symptoms and the patient’s physical history.

While it is not considered one of the warning signs of this condition, atrial fibrillation is being studied as possibly increasing the risk of Alzheimer’s. If a person suffers from atrial fibrillation and begins to show symptoms of Alzheimer’s, a doctor may want to take this into consideration. However, because studies are still ongoing, he will want to be careful not to use this as the main diagnostic sign.