Alzheimer’s vs Senility: Difference and Comparison

The disorder of Alzheimer’s and Senility are both related to mental health. Both Alzheimers and Senility occur when the communication within the brain is affected. The person loses memory and is not able to recall the events and recognize faces of the known and conversations. The main reason is the brain, which lacks an interneuron connection.

Key Takeaways

1. Alzheimer’s is a progressive neurological disease, while senility is a broad term for age-related cognitive decline.
2. Alzheimer’s leads to severe memory loss, impaired thinking, and personality changes, whereas senility may involve mild forgetfulness and reduced mental abilities.
3. Alzheimer’s is irreversible and incurable, whereas some cases of senility can be addressed through lifestyle changes and treatment of underlying conditions.

Alzheimer’s vs Senility

The difference between Alzheimer’s and Senility is that in Alzheimer’s person loses their memory when the network of neurons connection is affected, whereas Senility is mainly seen in old age and the two hemispheres of the brain lose the capability of communication. In Alzheimer’s, hallucinations are mostly reported in later stages, yet, in Senility, only memory loss is the sign in worst-case scenarios.

In Alzheimer‘s, the person’s social and thinking skills are affected. The main cause is the weakening of neuron connection that weakens communication within the brain. The brain cells destroy themselves and affect the function of the brain. The disease is incurable, and the main symptom of the disorder is Memory loss and in advanced stages causes malnutrition, dehydration, and the brain, which ultimately results in death.

On the other hand, Senility occurs in old age. It is a neurological condition that can either be minor or major. The disorder mainly affects the judgmental and problem-solving characteristics of the person. At first, the person forgets the skills that they have learned. After that, they start forgetting the recent conversations. Usually, in these cases, the corpus callosum (interconnecting bridge of the brain) is affected.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Alzheimer’s	Senility
Definition	A neurological disorder that is cognitive and becomes worst in later stages.	Senility is a disorder caused by declining age.
Cause of the disorder	Alzheimers disease is caused by the tweaking of the interneuron connection.	Senility occurs as the person becomes old.
Symptoms	Memory loss and in later stages causes illusions, and depression.	Memory loss is the worst symptom.
Diagnosis	Neurological exam, imaging	Memory Test
General Causes	Infection and Dementia	Normal aging, shrinkage of the brain
Genetics Involvement	Sometimes it occurs due to gene default.	No, it is not related to genes.

What is Alzheimer’s?

Alzheimer’s is a disorder that declines the social and personal skills of the person. There are millions of neurons in the brain. If the neurons weaken due to old age or lose connection because of an accident, then it leads to Alzheimer’s. In the case of genetic default, the presence or absence of a pair of chromosomes can also lead to Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s early symptoms are memory loss. The person is not able to remember recent conversations and events. Later, when the stage worsens, he/she is not able to recognize their family members. Alzheimer’s disorder leads to the following problems:

1. The person is not able to multitask and has issues with numbers.
2. The decisional and judgemental skills of the person are affected.
3. The person also has a problem with day-to-day activities.
4. The changes are also seen in the personality.
5. In advanced stages, dehydration and infection are seen in the brain, which also causes death.

The person should consult a doctor and ask a family member to come along. An early recommendation to a doctor can help the patient to improve their symptoms. The medications recommended for the improvement of Alzheimer’s are Enhancing Cognitive Medicines like Donepezil.

The person is also recommended to do Exercise for thirty minutes a day, which increases the oxygen concentration in the brain that improves its function of the brain.

What is Senility?

The Senility word itself refers to ageing. In old age, a person goes through many changes and also suffers health problems. The main reason for Senility is that the brain loses its many characteristics due to a lack of brain hemispheres communication. Therapy is mainly recommended in these cases, along with medications.

Many medical terms are found common in old age. As in old age, as the body loses flexibility same is with the brain losing it. The corpus callosum becomes hard that doesn’t allow proper communication between the brain’s two hemispheres.

It has also been observed in the experiments that in old age, due to shrinkage of the brain, Senility can be seen. Whereas, Senility also includes physical health. Senility has no connection with genetics. Therefore, it can also be said that it is an acquired trait due to old age. Earlier, doctors used to categorize Alzheimer’s.

Main Differences Between Alzheimer’s and Senility

1. Alzheimer’s can sometimes occur due to genetic disorders, whereas Senility has no connection with the disorder.
2. Senility occurs in old age, but Alzheimer’s can occur from birth also if it is related to genetics.
3. In Alzheimer’s, the interneuron connection weakens, but in Senility, the brain hemisphere communication is affected.
4. The main symptom of Alzheimer’s is memory loss, and in Senility, the early stage is detected with the loss of social and judgmental skills.
5. At later stages of Alzheimer’s, delusion and illusions are more observed, but in Senility, forgetfulness is the worst sign.

References

1. https://www.nature.com/articles/nrd2896
2. https://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/Citation/1965/08000/Senility_of_the_Face_Basic_Study_to_Understand_Its.13.aspx

Last Updated : 13 July, 2023