From: hound23x@gmail.com   
      
   What are the Causes of Death in People with Alzheimer's Disease?   
      
   By Andrew Rosenzweig, MD, Alzheimer's/Dementia Expert   
   Updated December 29, 2014.    
      
   Written or reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical   
   Review Board.   
      
   Question: What are the Causes of Death in People with Alzheimer's Disease?   
      
   The Alzheimer's Association notes that Alzheimer's disease is the sixth   
   leading cause of death in the United States. Average life expectancy is four   
   to seven years after diagnosis, although some people may live as much as 20   
   years or more. What actually    
   causes death in people with Alzheimer's disease?   
      
   Answer:   
      
   In late stage Alzheimer's disease, people become extremely confused and   
   disoriented. Eventually they lose the ability to communicate, and may not   
   respond at all. They are unable to care for themselves, becoming bedbound and   
   completely dependent on others.   
    Their appetite declines, and eventually they lose the ability to swallow,   
   leading to high risk of aspiration. This explains why more than 90% of the   
   more than 5 million people with dementia in the U.S. are in a nursing home   
   when they die.   
      
   Continue Reading Below   
      
   Under these difficult conditions, it's not hard to imagine how vulnerable   
   people with late-stage dementia become to succumbing to infections, pressure   
   sores and pneumonia. One study found that half of all people with dementia   
   admitted to a hospital for    
   pneumonia or a hip fracture died within six months of leaving the hospital.   
      
   See Also: The Late Stages of Alzheimer's Disease   
      
   Another study that examined autopsy reports of people with dementia found the   
   main causes of death were pneumonia, cardiovascular diseases, pulmonary   
   embolism, cachexia, and dehydration.   
      
   Source:   
      
   Javier, Noel S.C., MD, "Palliative Care for the Nursing Home Resident with   
   Dementia", Medicine and Health Rhode Island 93; 12:379-81, December 2010.   
      
      
      
   http://alzheimers.about.com/od/latestagealzheimers/f/Causes_of_D   
   ath_in_Alzheimers.htm   
      
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