Disease Articles

Here you will find articles about the most common conditions that cause a need for long term care. Each one has an overview, life expectancy and care issues that are specific to a given ailment.

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Alzheimer's & Related Dementia
Dementia is the loss of mental abilities, brain function, and mental deterioration. The term dementia refers to a group of symptoms that are the result of brain changes. Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (also known as multi infarct dementia) are the most common types of dementia.

Arthritis
Arthritis literally means "joint inflammation" and encompasses over 100 different diseases that affect the areas in and around the joints. Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. It is called a degenerative joint disease because it results from the deterioration of cartilage that covers the end of the bones in the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis, the second most common form of arthritis, is an autoimmune disease in which the lining of multiple joints in the body becomes inflamed as a result of the body's immune system activity.

Diabetes
Diabetes is a disorder in which blood sugar levels are abnormally high due to the lack of insulin, the hormone from the pancreas that controls sugar levels in the blood. When the body is unable to produce enough insulin to move sugar into the cells, high levels of sugar will be found in the blood producing the symptoms of diabetes.

Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's is a progressive neurological condition which results in the loss of neurons in the brain which produce dopamine. Without dopamine, the parts of the brain that coordinate movement are unable to function normally. As a result, the key symptoms of Parkinson's are tremors, stiffness, and slowness of movement.