Diagnosis Confirmation...Sigh

Hi everyone! Today was our big day at the Memory Clinic. First of all, thank you Dory SO MUCH for being there with us today. It was a huge comfort. The appointment went something like this....Dr. Hirato met with us collectively in the beginning to ask us questions and find out what we thought was going on. What can and can't Dave do, when did it start, things like that. Then Dr. Hirato kicked Dory and I out and met with Dave alone for well over an hour. He gave him a standardized mental exam, physical exam, and written/visual spacial exam. This is the same exam Dr. Shtrahman gives him every 3 months, just expanded. Dave has been scoring between 22-24 points out of 30 for a year. Today he scored 15. This was a huge blow. I have seen the progression of the disease, but I somehow always find a way in my mind to justify what I'm seeing. We then met with Dr. Hirota and Dr. Mario Mendez, who is the Chair of the Neurology Department at UCLA. Dr Mendez is....well...quirky, I guess you could say. He asked some questions, and then excused himself (for what, I didn't know at the time). He came back in a few and asked what diagnosis, if any, DR. Shtrahman had given us. I explained that he told us Dave had Dementia, probably Alzheimers. Dr Mendez the confirmed this diagnosis, telling us that Dave does indeed have Early Onset Alzheimer's Disease (EOAD) and that he was at a moderate stage. When I pushed him as to what stage he was in (1-7, 7 being end stage) he sighed and said he didn't really hold much credibility in the grading scale of the disease, every case is different, but if he had to make a guess, solid 4 leaning to 5, maybe a bit higher. Here comes that fucking truck that keeps running me over! Damn! Anyway, at least we have a strong idea of what's going on, and what's to come. Dave is now going on Namenda (it's like Aricept without the tummy discomfort) Dr. Mendez told us he is conducting a research project for the New England Journal of Medicine, trying to find a correlation of combat related issues and the high rate of diagnosis of EOAD in Viet Nam Vets. (fyi, anyone diagnosed with AD before the age of 65 is considered "early onset") We agreed to participate, and signed a mountain of paperwork involving that. He also wants to have Dave have a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) and send it back East to see if there are any toxins in the spinal fluid that could help explain the early onset. I'm rambling now, so I am going to sign off. Will try and collect my thoughts, pull myself out from under the truck, and get back with you when I'm more serene. Oh, by the way, for those of you who have said you can't post a comment, try again, I did some customizing of the page. At the bottom of the comment box, there is a pull down that says "Comment As", pull down and choose "anonymous" Thanks for listening, and I love you all! :)