alzheimers

Episodic vs Autobiographical memory

episodic = series of single past events

autobiographical = links past events together into personal history

reconstruction

combine stored information with other information to form what is more accurate memory

episodic future thinking

projecting yourself forwards in time to preexperience an event that might happen in your personal future

“mental time travel”

episodic future thinking functioning

rearranges memories of the past to put together a vision of the future

uses past experience to imagine the future and plan future actions
+ semantic memory

dementia

disorder effecting higher level mental functions

neurodegenerative

loss of mental capacity and memory

progressive development + interferes independent function

dementia causes

disease or brain damage

variety of factors (reduced blood supply, toxins (alc)

alzheimers

most common form of dementia (70%)

widespread cell death

alzheimers characteristics

memory loss

decline in cognitive function

decline in social skills

alzheimers diagnosis

only know through autopsy/post mortem

extensive brain shrinking and damage

how alzheimers travels

hippocampus —> cortical areas (disrupts stm) —> medial temporal lobe areas (ltm)

more explicit than implicit

retrograde amnesia

inability to retrieve previously stored episodic and semantic memory

anterograde amnesia

inability to form new episodic and semantic memory

symptoms of alzheimers

impaired explicit memory

repetition of stories and questions, fails to recognise people

early stage of alzheimers

2-4 years

forgers recent intake + where things go + recent events

gets lost

middle stage

2-10 years

delusions, low emotional regulation, needing assistance, bowel +bladder function issues

late stage

1-3 years

personality and behaviour changes

no ability to hold conversation

loses bladder/bowel control

biological causes of alzheimers

amyloid proteins form between neuron synapses and interfere with communication

neurofibrillary tangles

abnormal protein build up in neuron (tau) —> death of brain cells