U.S. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
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LEADING THE FEDERAL EFFORT ON AGING RESEARCH

See your doctor early


If you or someone in your family thinks your forgetfulness is getting in the way of your normal routine, it’s time to see your doctor. Seeing the doctor early means you can find out what’s causing you to be forgetful. If you have Alzheimer’s, finding the disease early gives you and your family more time to talk about and plan for your treatment and care.

Doctor checking a patient's blood pressure

Your doctor may do the following things to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease:

  • Check on your general health
  • Ask questions about your family’s health
  • Talk to someone in your family about your memory problems
  • Ask how well you can do everyday things like driving, writing a check, and talking with friends and family
  • Test your memory, problem solving, counting, and language skills
  • Do medical tests — such as checking your blood and urine
  • Do brain scans, also called CAT scans, that show pictures of your brain
See your doctor as soon as you begin to have memory problems .







































Page last updated Nov 25, 2008

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