Grossberg George T
Department of Psychiatry, St. Louis University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63104, USA.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2003;64 Suppl 9:3-6.
The defining characteristic of Alzheimer's disease is cognitive impairment, but commonly this impairment is accompanied by mood and behavioral symptoms such as depression, anxiety, irritability, inappropriate behavior, sleep disturbance, psychosis, and agitation. The symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are not normative to the aging process. Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease in the majority of cases can be made with confidence through office-based clinical assessment and informant interview. Alzheimer's disease is the most common of the dementing disorders and is exponentially increasing in incidence, projected to affect 8.64 million people in the United States by the year 2047. At present, no treatment can prevent or cure Alzheimer's disease, and the fact that Alzheimer's affects a geriatric population makes treatment all the more challenging. Therapies that could delay onset of symptoms even briefly would have a major impact on public health. As the prevalence of Alzheimer's disease increases, researchers are examining the efficacy of treatment options beyond the realm of the established cholinesterase inhibitors.
阿尔茨海默病的决定性特征是认知障碍，但通常这种障碍会伴有情绪和行为症状，如抑郁、焦虑、易怒、不当行为、睡眠障碍、精神病和激越。阿尔茨海默病的症状并非衰老过程的正常表现。在大多数情况下，通过门诊临床评估和信息提供者访谈，可以可靠地诊断出阿尔茨海默病。阿尔茨海默病是最常见的痴呆症，发病率呈指数级增长，预计到2047年美国将有864万人受其影响。目前，没有治疗方法能够预防或治愈阿尔茨海默病，而且阿尔茨海默病影响老年人群这一事实使得治疗更具挑战性。即使能短暂延迟症状发作的疗法也会对公共卫生产生重大影响。随着阿尔茨海默病患病率的上升，研究人员正在研究既定胆碱酯酶抑制剂领域之外的治疗方案的疗效。
