Alzheimer Disease: A Commonsense Approach to Evaluation and Management

An 84-year-old woman presents with a 3-year history of slowly progressive memory impairment accompanied by functional decline. The patient lives alone but has been receiving an increasing amount of support from her 2 daughters, who accompany her to the appointment. The daughters first noticed that their mother was having trouble driving. About a year ago, she started forgetting family recipes. She also left food cooking on the stove unattended and burned several pans. Currently, the daughters are providing meals and transportation, assisting with housework, and doing their mother’s laundry. They have become increasingly alarmed because she takes her medications only sporadically, despite the fact that they fill her pillboxes and call her regularly with reminders. Their chief concern is whether it is safe for their mother to continue to live alone.