What Is Dementia?_{Jan 30, 2024}

Dementia is a general term for loss of memory, language, problem-solving, and other thinking abilities that are severe enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia.

Learn how you can help those affected by Alzheimer’s

About dementia

What is dementia? Dementia is an umbrella term for loss of memory and other abilities. Dementia is not a single disease. It’s an overall term to describe a collection of symptoms that one may experience if they are living with a variety of diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease. Diseases grouped under the general term “dementia” are caused by abnormal brain changes. Dementia symptoms trigger a decline in thinking skills, also known as cognitive abilities, severe enough to impair daily life and independent function. They also affect behavior, feelings and relationships.

Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60-80% of cases. Vascular dementia, which occurs because of microscopic bleeding and blood vessel blockage in the brain, is the second most common cause of dementia. Those who experience the brain changes of multiple types of dementia simultaneously have mixed dementia. Many other conditions can cause symptoms of cognitive impairment that aren’t dementia, including some that are reversible, such as thyroid problems and vitamin deficiencies.

Dementia is often incorrectly referred to as “senility” or “senile dementia,” which reflects the formerly widespread but incorrect belief that serious mental decline is a normal part of aging.

What Causes Dementia?

Dementia is the result of changes in certain brain regions that cause neurons (nerve cells) and their connections to stop working properly. Researchers have connected changes in the brain to certain forms of dementia, but, in most cases, the underlying causes are unknown. For a small number of people, rare genetic variants that cause dementia have been identified.

While most changes in the brain that cause dementia are permanent and worsen over time, thinking and memory problems caused by the following conditions may improve when the condition is treated or addressed:

• Depression
• Medication side effects
• Excess use of alcohol
• Thyroid problems
• Vitamin deficiencies

What are the most common types of dementia?

Alzheimer’s disease

This is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for 60 to 80 percent of cases. It is caused by specific changes in the brain. The trademark symptom is trouble remembering recent events, such as a conversation that occurred minutes or hours ago, while difficulty remembering more distant memories occurs later in the disease. Other concerns like difficulty with walking or talking or personality changes also come later. Family history is the most important risk factor. Having a first-degree relative with Alzheimer’s disease increases the risk of developing it by 10 to 30 percent.

Vascular dementia

About 10 percent of dementia cases are linked to strokes or other issues with blood flow to the brain. Diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are also risk factors. Symptoms vary depending on the area and size of the brain impacted. The disease progresses in a step-wise fashion, meaning symptoms will suddenly get worse as the individual gets more strokes or mini-strokes.

Lewy body dementia

In addition to more typical symptoms like memory loss, people with this form of dementia may have movement or balance problems like stiffness or trembling. Many people also experience changes in alertness including daytime sleepiness, confusion or staring spells. They may also have trouble sleeping at night or may experience visual hallucinations (seeing people, objects or shapes that are not there).

Fronto-temporal dementia

This type of dementia most often leads to changes in personality and behavior because of the part of the brain it affects. People with this condition may embarrass themselves or behave inappropriately. For instance, a previously cautious person may make offensive comments and neglect responsibilities at home or work. There may also be problems with language skills like speaking or understanding.

Mixed dementia

Sometimes more than one type of dementia is present in the brain at the same time, especially in people aged 80 and older. For example, a person may have Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. It is not always obvious that a person has mixed dementia since the symptoms of one type of dementia may be most prominent or may overlap with symptoms of another type. Disease progression may be faster than with one kind of dementia.

What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Dementia?

Many people associate dementia with memory loss. This is because memory problems are often one of the early symptoms of a dementia disorder, but they are not the only ones. The symptoms of dementia can vary, depending on the type of dementia and which areas of the brain are affected. Symptoms may include:

• Memory loss, poor judgment, and confusion
• Changes in the ability to speak, understand, and express thoughts and/or words and to write and read
• Repeating questions
• Using unusual words to refer to familiar objects
• Taking longer to complete normal daily tasks
• Loss of interest in normal daily activities or events
• Hallucinations, delusions, and paranoia
• Not caring about other people’s feelings

People with dementia and those caring for them can face great challenges, including the person’s ability to handle tasks, changes in family relationships, loss of work, and the need for more care as the underlying disease progresses. People in the earlier stages of dementia may need help with daily activities, while people with advanced dementia may need constant care and supervision.

The R.MEDY is a leader in the field of memory disorders, and dementia. We provide comprehensive evaluations for the diagnosis and treatment of patients, conduct research on new therapies and offer support groups for patients, family members and friends. Our team comprises specialists from a wide variety of disciplines.

Can find more information about our clinic services here.