I haven’t addressed this question specifically on my blog, and I only spent a paragraph on it in my memoir. I’ve recently realized that this was something people wanted to know. I’m not sure what took me so long, because I even had this question myself.
I rarely get comments on my YouTube channel, so when I do, I perk up. One day, about three months ago, I got a comment on a video that I had posted more than six months prior. When I went to that post to respond to the comment, I noticed that this particular video had been viewed over 800 times! It’s usually twenty to thirty, so 800 was striking. Since then, it continues to take off, and is now at 1800+ views.
I was blown away. The title is “Pneumonia is the End-Stage Dementia Patient’s Friend.” In the blog post and video, I describe how hospice for Alzheimer’s disease can be helpful, but I think it’s the title that got people to click onto it. If you want to see it again and make it go even more viral, here’s the link.
I believe that people were looking for information about the last stages of Alzheimer’s disease and how the end might present itself.
So can a person die of Alzheimer’s disease? Yes, but…
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that is universally fatal. Abnormal proteins, amyloid plaques and tau tangles, gum up the spaces between brain cells so that they can no longer send signals to each other. When this happens, the brain cells die—use it or lose it. As more and more brain cells die, the whole brain itself shrivels and shrinks, affecting all functions of the brain.
Eventually, persons living with the disease lose the ability to correctly process information coming from other parts of the body, such as the eyes, ears, and balance. At the end, the affected brain is unable to send and receive signals to and from the heart and lungs. This is how someone can die directly from Alzheimer’s disease.
The literature states that persons can live with Alzheimer’s disease for twenty years or more, but it’s rare that someone with Alzheimer’s disease passes away in this direct fashion. It would take tremendous diligence and care, and good overall health.
It is much more common for a complication of Alzheimer’s disease, or another disease altogether, to end life. This is why the average length of time from diagnosis to death is eight to ten years, not twenty.
Most persons affected by Alzheimer’s disease are older, and therefore more likely to have other medical conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes, or kidney disease. They might, therefore, pass away from one of these conditions and not Alzheimer’s directly.
Most patients die from a complication of their Alzheimer’s disease, pneumonia being the leading cause. In the case of my husband, Harvey, it was aspiration pneumonia. He had developed seizures, another complication of Alzheimer’s disease, that were getting very difficult to control. At the same time, he was forgetting to swallow and had to be coaxed. I believe that Harvey inhaled retained food particles into his lungs during a prolonged seizure and developed pneumonia.
Other infections can overwhelm patients, such as an undetected urinary tract infection or an infected bed sore.
Confinement to a bed can lead to blood clots.
Another complication of Alzheimer’s disease is head trauma. Because the brain has shrunk, the blood vessels between the brain and its lining are stretched taut and can tear easily. Seemingly minor falls can lead to a subdural hematoma, bleeding between the brain and its lining.
A fall may also cause other injuries, which can be fatal in a patient with advanced Alzheimer’s disease.
All of these complications are made worse by dehydration and malnutrition due to a diminished ability to eat and drink.
Each person with Alzheimer’s disease is different, and the course of the disease will be different for each one. It’s difficult to predict, and thus hard for the caregiver to plan ahead and feel prepared emotionally. Hopefully, the information here is helpful.
4 Responses
Falls, faints (medication side effects), and other hemodynamic abnormalities more common in dementia patients that leads to injuries that can be life-threatening, even those prescribed for the dementia itself. Wife suffered from these until memenatine and Donepizil were stopped. Hydration is also important.
Absolutely! Thank you for adding this insight.
Renee,
I am not a doctor and really cannot argue but what I know is watching my us and with Alzheimer’s. He passed away February 10, 2021. He was in good physical shape. Two weeks before his death, he was walking, talking and eating. In two days time, he stopped walking. He was evaluated and was put on hospice. That was February 2. Within a week, he died. I firmly believe his brain just told him to stop. Alzheimer’s was the cause. My husband was a Vietnam vet and I believe Agent Orange was the cause of Alzheimer’s but our government will not recognize that fact. Am I bitter? Yes!!
Sorry for venting but I knew you would understand.
I read your book and it was a lifeline. Thank you for telling your experience and telling the journey of Harvey.
Linda Crowe
Oh, Linda! I am so sorry about your husband. I guess there’s a silver lining in that he didn’t linger a long time once he became so severe. I wonder if he had a stroke. I know that you’ll never know for sure. And Agent Orange is just a big fat horrible mystery that will haunt us for a long time. So many unanswered questions.