Alzheimer disease |
At one time Reagan "possessed a remarkable memory that his brother described as photographic" [9]. Soon after graduating from college, he auditioned for a sports announcer job by "re-creating the fourth quarter of a Eureka College football game from memory" [9]. (Reagan had played in the game.) As an actor, "much of Reagan's early career was spent in the B-film division, where his knack for quick memorization made him a valuable asset. Producers of B-films, as Reagan often put it, 'didn't want them good, they wanted them Thursday'" [9]. By contrast, as President, in his 70s, "He forgot the names of Cabinet officers, trusted aides and visiting dignitaries. In Brazil, he toasted the people of Bolivia" [9]. A friend tells Dr. Zebra of a film clip in which Reagan, as President, is asked a question, only to look completely blank until his wife Nancy whispers an evasive answer in his ear (audible to the camera), which Reagan then speaks. Recovering from being shot (three months into his presidency), Reagan became disoriented in the intensive care unit. His physicians, therefore, pressed to have him moved to a hospital suite [1j]. Comment: In retrospect, this was probably a sign of Reagan's slipping mentation... yes, Dr. Zebra is aware of the many reasons people get disoriented in an ICU, but let's face it, it does not often happen to 40 year olds. This is especially true given a physician's statement that during Reagan's recovery "He always had a high pain threshold and required only small amounts of pain medication" [6a]. In 1993 Reagan became increasingly forgetful. Alzheimer disease was diagnosed during his annual visit to the Mayo Clinic in 1994. His condition was announced to the public in a carefully worded letter to the American people on Nov. 5, 1994 [9] There is an interesting photograph of Reagan, taken in 1996, that shows a visible sign of his Alzheimer disease . He is shown standing with a model of the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan, a ship named in his honor, along with his wife and the CEO of the company building the ship. Reagan's necktie peeks out below the button of his suit coat. Reagan was extremely careful with his appearance all his life -- as an actor and as a President who wore $1000 suits -- so this tiny slip is actually significant, as a sign of inattention caused by his disease. (For a case in which this sign was actually responsible for the diagnosis of Alzheimer disease in a business executive, see [3a].) Was Reagan symptomatic while in office? There was speculation about his mental function as early as 1987, just after he underwent his third major operation while in office (prostate). In response, Reagan held a press conference on March 19, 1987 in which he performed extremely well in front of a hostile press [12a]. Reagan's mother was "senile" for "a few years" before she died of atherosclerotic disease at age 80 [2]. |
