Talk with your doctor about the signs you've experienced.

Your doctor will evaluate your overall health and identify any conditions that could affect how well the mind is working. Some symptoms can be reversed if they are caused by treatable conditions, such as depression or vitamin deficiencies. Your doctor may refer you to a specialist such as a:

• Neurologist – specializes in diseases of the brain and nervous system
• Psychiatrist – specializes in disorders that affect mood or the way the mind works
• Psychologist – has special training in testing memory and other mental functions

Diagnosis

A physician skilled in treating individuals with Alzheimer’s can make a diagnosis with about 90 percent accuracy. Because there is no single test for Alzheimer’s, diagnosis usually involves a thorough medical history and physical examination, as well as tests to assess memory and the overall function of the mind and nervous system. The information learned from these tests helps rule out other conditions and determines if a person has Alzheimer's disease.

A complete medical evaluation for suspected memory loss includes:

• A medical and psychiatric history
• A physical and neurological exam, which may include brain imaging techniques, such as CT or MRI scans
• An evaluation of the person's ability to perform common daily activities, such as managing money, taking medications or going shopping
• A "mental status exam" to measure thinking and memory
• Lab tests
• Interview with family members or close friends about any noticeable changes in a person's mental function and behavior

• Doctor's appointment checklist
  Health issues to document and questions to ask.

Treatments

While there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, there are five prescription drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that can help treat some symptoms in some people. They are:

• Donepezil (Aricept®), approved for all stages of Alzheimer's
• Rivastigmine (Exelon®), approved for mild to moderate Alzheimer's
• Galantamine (Razadyne®), approved for mild to moderate Alzheimer's
• Tacrine (Cognex®), approved for mild to moderate Alzheimer's, but rarely prescribed due to side effects
• Memenatine (Namenda®), approved for moderate to severe Alzheimer's

• FDA-approved treatments
  More information about treatments and how they work.
  

Which treatment is best? A person should talk to his or her doctor about what treatment may be most beneficial. Everyone responds differently to medication. For one individual, one drug may be more effective but have greater side effects. For another person, the same drug may be less effective but have no side effects.

Hope on the horizon

Better diagnostic tools to detect Alzheimer's disease at earlier stages and disease-modifying drugs are closer than ever before. Several drugs are in Phase III clinical trials, and many show great promise at slowing or stopping the progression of Alzheimer's.

What to do next:  Plan ahead -->

"I went to the neurologist, and I was tested. The news came back that I had Alzheimer's. I thought, 'Oh my gosh, that's an old person's disease.'"