Diagnosing Alzheimer's

Diagnosing Alzheimer's disease in the early stages will offer the best opportunity to treat related symptoms. An early diagnosis will also help patients and their families plan for the future while the patient is still able to participate in the decision-making process. Tests that doctors use when diagnosing Alzheimer's include memory tests, medical tests, and brain scans.

 

Diagnosing Alzheimer's: An Overview

Today, the only definite way of diagnosing Alzheimer's disease is to find out whether there are plaques and tangles in brain tissue. However, to look at brain tissue, doctors usually must wait until they do an autopsy, which is an examination of the body that is done after a person dies. Therefore, doctors can only make a diagnosis of "possible" or "probable" Alzheimer's disease while the person is still alive.
 

Tests Used When Diagnosing Alzheimer's

At specialized centers, doctors can diagnose Alzheimer's disease correctly up to 90 percent of the time. Several tools are used when diagnosing Alzheimer's disease, including:
 
  • Tests of memory, problem solving, attention, counting, and language
  • Medical tests, such as tests of blood, urine, or spinal fluid
  • Brain scans
  • Questions about the person's general health, past medical problems, and ability to carry out daily activities.
 

Diagnosing Alzheimer's or Other Medical Conditions

Sometimes, these test results help the doctor find other possible causes of the person's symptoms. Other conditions that have symptoms similar to Alzheimer's include:
 
  • Thyroid problems
  • Drug reactions
  • Depression
  • Brain tumors
  • Blood vessel disease in the brain.
 
Some of these other conditions can be treated successfully.
 
(Diagnosing Alzheimer's Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD