Is this Alzheimers?

UNH Wife

Hello,

I’m reaching out for help, not sure if I am in the right place or not but I am hoping someone can answer my question. My husband is almost 73.

There are several things that have me observing what is going on with him and today one of those things happened again. It might seem trivial but it’s just another thing in the list of forgetting topics and subjects we have discussed, forgetting TV programs he has watched, falling asleep mid day in front of his new boss in a one on one training and other memory slips.

What I am asking about specially here is, is it a memory thing or a clinical Alzheimer’s thing when he forgets to do a daily activity that he and I have done for decades. It’s happened at least three times in the past few months, today being the most recent and this was never a thing before. That thing being giving me a goodbye kiss before he leaves for work. One of those three or so times he remembered he haven’t and called me later in the day apologizing, the other two, including today, nothing. This is not like him. We have had the memory loss discussion, i.e., forgetting things in the past three years and he admitted it and said yes, I am aware. He never said he was aware to me till I brought it up. Since that time three years ago I am continuing to see more forgetfulness and the missing kissing me in the morning is the newest part of that. There is a family history of memory issues with his father and aunt, both sides of the family. Should I be concerned? Does this warrant testing? I brought it up to his Nurse Practitioner a couple of years ago and he gave him the clock test and that was it. Thank you for your support.

UNHWife

 

Stuck in the middle

It could be a lot of things.  Actually, it sounds a lot like sleep apnea to me.  Falling asleep during a one-on-one is something I would do without my CPAP.  Does he snore loudly?

I would get him in for a thorough physical exam, and tell my concerns to the doctor.  He may have something that is easily treatable.

EVERYDAY

My husband was diagnosed having Alzheimer's 3.5 years ago when he was 70.  Today, he could still draw a perfect clock, but that does not mean anything.  I would suggest making appointment with a neurologist.  They may do cognitive test, MRI, or spiral punctual on him, or all of the tests.  Those tests could tell if he is having Alzheimer's disease or not.

UNH Wife

Thanks so much. He does snore most nights so that is something else to look into.

UNH Wife

Thank you. That was my thought to. To explore more tests. When I brought up his memory issues with the Nurse Practitioner they did suggest further testing MRI but at the time he only had Medicare and it did not look like it would be covered. I think it is worth pursing now. Tonight after he arrived home I mentioned a family member with a health issue that we discussed in depth last Friday and he asked specifically about the matter tonight and who was handling a particular detail of this persons care (who has power of attorney)  with no reference to the fact that we had had that very discussion and the name of the person last Friday. . .  Would sleep apnea cause this? Is this normal age related memory lapses? Definitely going to look into testing.

Stuck in the middle

A person with severe sleep apnea doesn't really sleep more than a few minutes at a time, and is chronically sleep deprived.  Sleep deprivation definitely affects memory and concentration.  Sleep apnea also causes hypertension and contributes to obesity.  With his symptoms, including snoring and falling asleep at work, I would talk to his doctor and get a sleep study ASAP.

A brain CT to rule out organic causes such as brain bleed and tumor would be a good idea too.  What you describe is definitely not normal for a man of 72, and needs to be checked out.  Tell the doctor what the symptoms are, and let him figure it out.  

Good luck.  I very much hope he doesn't have Alzheimer's.

Rescue mom

My DH was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s 3-4 years ago, after extensive testing. Doctors say he’s now lower midstage. The list of what he cannot do is too long, but at a check-up a couple weeks ago, he drew that darn clock perfectly—as well as a couple other shapes they asked him to copy. Other questions were a fail. Just saying. 

His memory losses, as you describe, was one of the earliest signals. A lot of others thought just “normal aging” but then some big things happened that led to testing. 

I don’t know anything about sleep apnea, but it seems to be a widespread cause of problems.

You mention your DH still works, have you heard from anyone in his office? For me/us, that was a big problem. My DH had serious issues at work, but they worked around him, in ways that were not good, for too long. I wish I’d known sooner.

Ed1937

Welcome to the forum. Sorry you are dealing with this, but we have a good bunch of people here willing to help. Please see a neurologist who has a large part of his/her practice with dementia patients. They will do a lot of testing to eliminate possible causes.

jfkoc

Could be Alzheimer's but it could be any number of other treatable problems. Please go online and google Alzheimer's diagnosis. Then find a Dr who will follow the correct protocol for diagnosis. Jumping to an MRI is overkill.

Paris20

UNH wife, it’s hard to say what’s wrong but your story brings back memories. Years ago, over time, I started noticing my husband’s forgetfulness. It seemed unusual. At times, he’d forget where we were going in the car. He started repeating questions and comments…not all the time but with increasing frequency. Somewhere in between all that I told our PCP, who referred us to a neurologist. After much testing, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2015, the disease that killed his grandmother. To this day, he thinks he’s fine (i.e., anasognosia). He definitely is not.

UNH, your gut is telling you something’s not right. That was exactly how I felt. You should follow through with a visit to your PCP, who can refer you to a neurologist. Your husband may not have dementia. Tests will determine what’s going on. You’re worried, so you need to get confirmation that you’re right or that you’re wrong. You need to take the lead here because it is not likely that your husband will initiate a medical visit.