Final answer:
Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia with early symptoms including memory loss and confusion. It was named after Alois Alzheimer and is characterized by amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain.
Step-by-step explanation:
The most common type of dementia with early symptoms such as difficulty remembering names and recent events is Alzheimer's disease (AD). Symptoms of Alzheimer's disease include disruptive memory loss, confusion about time or place, difficulty with planning and executing tasks, poor judgment, and personality changes. Problems with smelling certain scents can also be indicative of Alzheimer's disease and serve as an early warning sign. This disease was studied by Solomon Carter Fuller and was named after Alois Alzheimer, who discovered amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain of a woman with severe dementia symptoms in 1911. The severity and longevity of these symptoms, along with a potential loss of neurons in the hippocampus, characterize Alzheimer's.