Health. Death of Bernard Lacombe: Can you die from Alzheimer's disease?

French football legend Bernard Lacombe died on Tuesday, June 17, at the age of 72. He suffered from Alzheimer's disease. This neurodegenerative disease affects 900,000 people in France , including "65,000 under the age of 65," according to the France Alzheimer association.

A slow but inexorable progression

The disease, which affects around 20% of people over the age of 80, progresses slowly and leads to a state of total dependency, generally 10 years after diagnosis.

In the final stage, memory disorders become major and autonomy almost completely disappears.

And when death occurs, it is not directly due to this degeneration, but to the complications it causes.

What are the complications?

The most common complication is swallowing disorders. The patient experiences increasing difficulty swallowing, gradually reducing their diet and hydration.

This situation is explained by the fear of "choking," a phenomenon in which food or liquids divert towards the respiratory tract instead of descending normally towards the stomach.

These false routes can trigger lung infections, particularly pneumonia, which is the most common cause of death in Alzheimer's patients.

Finally, oral and written language are severely disrupted, as is comprehension. The person isolates themselves and no longer communicates, and they no longer complain. This can delay the diagnosis of other pathologies: heart or respiratory diseases, cancers, etc. Furthermore, falls are common and can lead to serious or even fatal injuries.

Source: France Alzheimer