Alzheimer’s Disease is one of the most common types of dementia. It is characterized as a progressive brain disorder that affects memory, thinking, and language. The exact cause of AD is unknown but it is hypothesized to be a combination of various genetic and environmental factors. AD has many common symptoms such as confusion, behavioral changes, and difficulties executing ADLS. However, AD can also be characterized by its plethora of comorbidities.
A comorbidity is the presence of one or more diseases present in a patient simultaneously. Alzheimer’s specifically has a plethora of comorbidities ranging from obesity to hearing loss. However some of its most prominent comorbidities are different psychological conditions. One specific instance of this is depression. In an article written by the National Library of Medicine, depression occurred in 32.3% of the 2,618 recorded AD cases from 2001 to 2011.
Anxiety is also a prevalent comorbidity in Alzheimer’s patients, specifically during the early onset. In an article published in the National Library of Medicine, anxiety symptoms were common among Alzheimer’s Patients and occurred in 70% of the subjects. Furthermore, 54% of Alzheimer’s patients had a comorbidity of both depression and anxiety.
Anxiety and depression both present as mild to moderate in regard to their comorbidity with Alzheimer’s Disease. However, there are much more severe psychological comorbidities such as psychosis and bipolar disorder. In a sense these both go hand in hand, similar to how anxiety and depression present. The only difference being the gravity of the conditions. “Behavioral and psychotic manifestations, including aggression, delusions, and hallucinations, are frequent comorbidities in patients with debilitating nervous illnesses such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Multiple Sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease.” (National Library of Medicine, 2022). Evidently, psychosis poses a greater threat to both the patient and the people close to them making it one of the more serious comorbidities of AD.
Bipolar Disorder is similar to psychosis in the context of severity, but unlike any of the aforementioned comorbidities, BD is unique. BD is a disorder characterized by manic episodes. Unlike any other comorbidity, BD can also contribute to the development of dementia. In a meta analysis of the risk of developing dementia in bipolar individuals, it was found that the association between BD and dementia is consistent across numerous studies. “Given the limited number of long-term longitudinal, well-controlled studies of progressive cognitive changes in BD, our meta-analysis provides additional evidence that bipolar disorder can be viewed as a progressive condition that leads to cognitive impairment and dementia, at least in a subgroup of individuals.” (National Library of Medicine, 2017). Without any clear cause of Alzheimer’s Disease and there not being a solid treatment either, it is all the more important to pay attention to its comorbidities. These comorbidities can allow us to potentially identify Alzheimer’s Disease during its early onset and reduce the severity of its symptoms. Being able to identify them actively may also yield a connection between the ailments and might pave the road to finding a cure.
Works Cited
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “What Is Alzheimer’s Disease?” Www.cdc.gov, CDC, 2020, www.cdc.gov/aging/aginginfo/alzheimers.htm#:~:text=Alzheimer.
Diniz, Breno S., et al. “History of Bipolar Disorder and the Risk of Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, vol. 25, no. 4, Apr. 2017, pp. 357–362, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jagp.2016.11.014. Accessed 29 Mar. 2021.
“Https://Www.cancer.gov/Publications/Dictionaries/Cancer-Terms/Def/Comorbidity.” Www.cancer.gov, 2 Feb. 2011, www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/comorbidity.
Katabathula, Sreevani, et al. “Comorbidity‐Driven Multi‐Modal Subtype Analysis in Mild Cognitive Impairment of Alzheimer’s Disease.” Alzheimer’s & Dementia, 27 Sept. 2022, https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.12792. Accessed 5 Feb. 2023.
Santiago, Jose A., and Judith A. Potashkin. “The Impact of Disease Comorbidities in Alzheimer’s Disease.” Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, vol. 13, no. 1, 2021, p. 631770, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33643025/, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2021.631770.
Teri, L., et al. “Anxiety in Alzheimer’s Disease: Prevalence and Comorbidity.” The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, vol. 54, no. 7, 1 July 1999, pp. M348–M352, https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/54.7.m348. Accessed 30 Jan. 2021.
Wang, Jen-Hung, et al. “Medical Comorbidity in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Nested Case-Control Study.” Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, vol. 63, no. 2, 24 Apr. 2018, pp. 773–781, https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-170786.