The Aging Brain Flashcards
What is affected by the aging brain
Vascular changes, anatomical changes, cellular and neuronal changes, cognitive changes
What is the limbic system in control of
Learning, memory and emotion
What is the frontal lobe in control of
Planning, strategy, working memory
What are the substantial nirvana in control of
Movement, reward and learning
what is the cerebellum in control of
Movement balance
hat is the caudate in control of
Executive functions, rewards system
What is fluid intelligence
Logical problem solving
is fluid intelligence affected by aging
Yes
What’s re Somme of the brain functions in memory that decrease due to normal aging
Small changes to - implicit, short term and procedural memory
Gradual decline - episodic memory
Recognition works more on familiarity rather than recollection of memories
What brain functions aren’t affected by aging
Knowledge grows, the ability to apply it doesn’t get affected, memory recognition isn’t effected
What is the neuropsychological theory for the aging brain
Task performance depends on intactness of different parts of the brain, specifically the hippocampus
What is the general resource theory of the aging brain
Decline in ability to do tasks can be explained by decline inn a general ability such as processing speeds on attention
How to improve cognitive function
Physical activity, health, mental health, stress management, diet, social support
what’s the difference between normal aging and pathological aging
Normal - memory loss, slower at things, can’t multi-task
Pathological- getting lost in familiar places, forgetting lots, tremors
What are the symptoms of dementia
Memory loss,
what are the causes of dementia
Neuronal degeneration, blood vessel injury, reactions to drugs and alcohol, infection in the nervous system
What causes Parkinson’s
The degeneration of dopamine
Wheat does the neuronal deviation disrupt in Parkinson’s
The CNS capacity to control and coordinate muscle movement
Here in the brain is the site for neuronal degeneration in Parkinson’s
The substantial nigra
In AD, how fast is the deterioration?
Slow
How long does it take for someone to die from AD
4-8 years
How many people in 2001 had dementia
24 million
How many people in 2040 will have dementia
84 million
Why is there an increase in dementia cases
People are living longer and bigger population
What percentage does dementia effect people between the ages of 60 and 64
1%
What percentage does dementia effect people 85+
24% and 35%
What are the causes of AD
Age, genetics, depression, head injury, obesity, smoking
Brain based markers for AD
Brain shrinkage, ventricular enlargement, presence of neurofibrillary tangles, amyloid plaque
Where in the brain is most affected by tangles and plaque in AD
Temporal and frontal lobes
What are neurofibrillary tangles
They’re intraneuronal structures composed of protein
What is amyloid plaque and AD
Cholingeric pathways of AD patients are damaged by building of amyloid plaques
What is the treatment for AD
There is no cure, drug therapy delays
