Educational Media Reviews Online

With approximately 20 million cases worldwide, and an anticipated increase in the number of cases as the population ages, public awareness of Alzheimer's disease is on the rise. A significant portion of this increased current awareness began with the media's coverage of former President Ronald Regan's diagnosis of Alzheimer's. Unlike the majority of other videos on this topic that deal mostly with patient care aspects of the disease, this video provides a broader coverage. Filmed in a variety of settings worldwide, it documents the earliest discussion of the disease in case notes of Dr. Alois Alzheimer, and further notes significant developments in research on the disease through the 1960's and 1980's. Although information is provided on the pathology of disease, the use of simple graphics and limited jargon facilitate increased comprehension. Throughout the video we see patients who are at various stages in the disease, and listen to family members who speak about their issues of coping and caring. Also provided are examples of various types of care facilities designed to meet the unique needs of the Alzheimer's patient. The video ends with an unusual insight by an Alzheimer's researcher - "that we are not as intent on finding a cure for the disease, as much as we are for delaying the onset of the symptoms…If we were able to delay the onset of symptoms for 10 years, nearly all the people who suffer from Alzheimer's would instead die of old age." Recommended.