I found this on the internet and thought it was interesting.
The hidden connection between pain and Alzheimer's
When most people think about Alzheimer's they rarely think about pain. But believe it or not, some of the most common drugs doctors prescribe for Alzheimer's patients are painkillers. And the reason they prescribe these drugs may point to a better way to treat Alzheimer's and any pain they may experience from the disease.
When doctors prescribe painkillers for Alzheimer's patients, they aren't doing so to treat the disease. Rather, they're treating the agitation many Alzheimer's patients feel. Until recently, doctors would prescribe powerful antipsychotics or antidepressants for agitation. But recent research suggests the painkillers often work significantly better.
The reason, the researchers suggest, is that Alzheimer's patients don't know how to communicate their discomfort, so they become agitated. The painkillers simply reduce their discomfort, so they're less agitated. This would make sense, as arthritis pain is so common, and inflammation contributes to both arthritis pain and brain dysfunction.
Since painkillers are safer than antipsychotics (which increase your risk of stroke and death), doctors would much rather prescribe the pain pills. So the number of pain pills Alzheimer's patients take has gone up significantly in recent years.
Thanks for posting this. In my case the painkillers also seem to affect his cognitive ability to the point that I am not sure which is the lesser of 2 evils.
Joan, I didn't post the link because it was part of an email from a supplement company, but I thought the information was interesting. Unfortunately, they did not give the source.
My son's mother-in-law was an example of this. She became increasingly agitated until they found an abcessed tooth.
Same thing happened to my friend's husband. He was agitated, kept changing his clothes and washing them in the machine. Up and down all night. She finally got him to tell her that his jaw hurt - yup - absessed tooth.
The plaque that builds up in the brain causing Alzheimer's also causes inflammation. Because of that I started giving Lloyd 1 anti-inflammatory (over the counter) per day. Since I started, he has had significantly fewer headaches. Can't hurt!