Alzheimers

Could you tell me in layman's terms what this means:

This is results from MRI/Brain:

There is diffuse atrophy.  There is a moderate burden of T2 hyperintense foci seen within the periventricular subcortical white matter bilaterally as well as some foci within the pons and compatible with chronic ischemic microangiopathy.  Diffusion images demonstrate no evidence of acute infarction.

Thanks, Angie

[Godofredo MD]

Hi.

Are these your MRI results? If yes, could you tell us what symptoms you experienced which led to an MRI being performed?

Diffuse brain atrophy can be caused by many conditions and is not specific to any one of them. This is also true with small vessel ischemia seen on the MRI. One thing that was certain in your findings was no presence of any acute brain infarction (stroke).

You should have a neurologist correlate this MRI findings with any symptoms you may be experiencing.

Hope this helps.

[tjsangel87]

Hi,
Thank you for your quick response.  No, these are the results of my mother-in-law's MRI.  We were told that in a past MRI that they did see an old stroke.  She suffers from depression and headaches.  I took her for this MRI b/c of headaches and the fear she may have had another stroke.  

She was diagnosed with Alzheimers and severe depression.  I was wondering if a stroke was causing some of her issues so we got the MRI done to rule out anything else.  She is 74 and was diagnosed about a year ago.

[tjsangel87]

I really need some guideance on the Alzheimer's.  I am going to be taking care of her and am just wondering what is in store for us ahead.  She goes in and out of what appears to be moments of total control to not being able to remembering how to write a check.  She started with hallucinations this summer and we didn't realize it until she went into more detail earlier this fall and told me that there were men in her room and she couldn't sleep.  She is now on Geodon, which has been a blessing.  We have no more late night visitors.

My father-n-law passed away four years ago and ever since we have been living with her.  She now feels that she wants to live alone.  She forgets to pay bills and for a while couldn't rember how to make mac-n-cheese.  She cooks on rare occasions and makes the same thing over and over. I guess the recipe is something that stuck with her.

I am scared to let her live alone, she calls me everyday at work for every little thing.  I don't mind...I am just worried she isn't able to live alone.  Is there any way to guage how far along she is in her disease?

[Godofredo MD]

Hi.

The disease progression in AD varies from person to person with a length of disease as short as 3 years to as long as 20. There are certain staging systems which provide guides to the pattern of the disease and would be helpful in making decisions regarding care.

One staging system categorizes the disease as early, middle and late stages. The Global Deterioration Scale (Reisberg Scale 2), is another system that describes the disease progression in seven stages.

Again it is important to emphasize that each person will have a unique presentation and progression of his/her disease. Symptoms may appear in any order and there is no clear line when one stage ends and another begins, with overlapping of stages occurring commonly.

Also, an important thing to remember is that the focus should not be made squarely on what abilities are lost during disease progression, but also focus on the abilities that do remain, such as the senses of touch and hearing, and the ability to respond to emotion.

Hope this helps. Good luck.