Understanding Alzheimer's: Brain Regions Affected & Their Impact

Alzheimer's disease is a common progressive type of dementia that affects a person's memory, judgment, speech and mood. Damage to certain parts of the brain cause these behavioral and personality changes.

Areas of the brain

• The areas of the brain most significantly affected by Alzheimer's disease are the frontal lobe, temporal lobe, parietal lobe and, more specifically, a structure called the hippocampus, which controls the forming and consolidation of new memories.

Expert Insight

• Research findings from the World Alzheimer Congress in 2001 suggest that a brain region called the entorhinal cortex, which sits in front of the hippocampus and is vital for memory consolidation, is the first area of the brain to deteriorate after the onset of Alzheimer's.

Plaques and Tangles

• Alzheimer's is diagnosed by its symptoms, but the only way to completely confirm a person has the disease is to identify plaques and tangles in the brain after death. These hardened fibers form around the hippocampus, the temporal lobes and the parietal lobes.

Functions

• The temporal lobes aid in language and memory. Damage or lesions to the parietal lobes can cause disorientation, and the frontal lobes are associated with personality and judgment.

Prevention/Solution

• A March 2009 article in the medical journal Neurology noted research that suggests people with lost brain cells in the hippocampus are most likely to develop Alzheimer's or other dementias later in life. The best way to avoid this atrophy is to keep the brain and memory systems active by socializing, doing puzzles and other activities.