Dr. Alois Alzheimer was a German psychiatrist who lived and practiced in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Alzheimer was born in Marktbreit, a small village in the southern Bavarian region of Germany where he grew up, and his birthplace is now a national monument, which has, perhaps ironically, been restored by the pharmaceutical company.
In his days as a student, Alzheimer attended three Universities, before earning his medical degree from Wurzberg Un iversity in 1886. During his studies, Alzheimer developed a lifelong passion for histology -- the microscopic study of the structure of human tissues -- and set the foundation for his unprecedented observations in the fields of epilepsy, brain tumors, Huntington's chorea, alcoholic delirium, syphilis, and what became known as Alzheimer's disease.
As a professional, Alzheimer was known for wearing pince-nez spectacles, and was rarely seen without a cigar in his mouth. Both personable and outgoing, he was viewed as a pioneering researcher, a colorful character in medical school classrooms, and a genial family man. Interestingly, in his career as a psychiatrist, Dr. Alzheimer attained much more fame and notoriety for the bath treatments he developed to soothe manic patients than he did for the disease that bore his name -- a diagnosis that was rarely applied during Alzheimer's lifetime.
Dr. Alzheimer himself passed away in 1915, succumbing to cardiac arrest. The disease bearing Alzheimer's name, not to mention Dr. Alzheimer himself, might have faded into historical oblivion if it weren't for several developments in the mid-to-late 20th century that gradually increased the average life expectancy of people living in industrialized countries. The advent of modern medicines, machines, surgical procedures, and, most importantly, improved diets and sanitation measures all served to prolong and protect life, a development that ensured more people would eventually develop Alzheimer's disease.For information and advice about caring for elderly relatives, visit caring.com.
