Symptoms and Signs of Alzheimer's Disease Symptoms and Signs
(Early, Middle, and Late Stages)

Doctor's Notes on Alzheimer's Disease Symptoms and Signs
(Early, Middle, and Late Stages)

Alzheimer's disease is a common cause of dementia, which is impairment in memory and thinking severe enough to affect an individual's ability to function in daily life. The disease progresses at different rates in different people.

Early symptoms of Alzheimer's disease include mild, slowly worsening memory loss, difficulty recognizing familiar people or things, trouble remembering recent events or activities, inability to solve simple arithmetic problems, social withdrawal, and trouble performing complex tasks. Symptoms of the middle (intermediate) stage of Alzheimer's disease include trouble with everyday activities, major gaps in memory, inability to think clearly and solve problems, inability to make judgments, difficulty learning new information, disorientation, confusion, anxiety, suspiciousness, hallucinations, and delusions. Symptoms of late-stage Alzheimer's disease include complete loss of short- and long-term memory, inability to recognize close relatives and friends, dependence on others for everyday activities, urinary or stool incontinence, severe disorientation, personality changes such as hostility or aggressiveness, loss of mobility, impaired ability to communicate, difficulty swallowing, which can result in malnutrition, choking, and aspiration.