Management of Alzheimer's disease in a primary care setting

This article covers a broad topic from the pragmatic point of view of a primary care physician. The perspective is that of a primary care physician who teaches resident physicians and students in a medical school and for almost 20 years has conducted clinical research in patient care settings, including a large Health Maintenance Organization in Seattle, Washington. This article addresses four general areas that are important for the management of dementia in primary care settings: recognition and diagnosis, treatment in the community (treatment before a person becomes permanently or semipermanently institutionalized), treatment as the disease progresses, and minimization of excess disability.