Alzheimer's Symptoms

• Is increasingly and persistently forgetful


• Has mild personality changes


• Has minor disorientation


• Frequently loses or misplaces familiar items


• Has mild difficulties finding the right word (aphasia)


• Has mild difficulties performing arithmetic calculations

As the disease progresses to moderate Alzheimer's disease, the person:

• Has noticeable memory loss


• Frequently uses words inappropriately


• Begins to lose the ability to perform normal tasks of daily living involving muscle coordination, such as cooking, dressing, bathing, shopping, or balancing a checkbook (apraxia)


• May wander off, become agitated, confuse day and night, and fail to recognize friends and relatives with whom they are not very close


• Loses the ability to recognize and use familiar objects, such as clothing (agnosia)

In the final stage of severe Alzheimer's disease, the affected individual:

• Becomes uncomprehending and mute


• Loses all self-care ability


• Becomes incontinent


• Is unable to feed, dress, and bathe him- or herself

If the person has a sudden onset of these symptoms -- or early symptoms such as seizures, gait problems, or loss of vision and coordination -- it's less likely that they indicate Alzheimer's.

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