Dementia Its Symptoms, Causes, Types, And Treatment
‘Dementia’ is a term medicos use to characterize a group of symptoms that affect memory, thinking, and social skills and are severe enough to interfere with your daily life. It is not a specific disease, but several diseases can lead to dementia.
Dementia normally involves memory loss. However, there are several causes of ‘memory loss.’ Memory loss does not mean you have dementia, although it is often one of the first signs of the condition.
Progressive dementia is the most common cause in older people, such as Alzheimer’s disease, but there are other causes of dementia as well. It depends on the cause, and some dementia symptoms may be reversible.
Symptoms Of Dementia
Symptoms of dementia depend on the cause of the disease, but symptoms may differ. However, common signs and symptoms include cognitive and psychological changes.
Cognitive Changes
- Memory loss, which someone else usually notices
- Difficulty communicating or finding words
- Difficulty with visual and spatial skills, such as getting confused while driving
- Difficulty reasoning or problem-solving
- Difficulty handling complicated tasks
- Difficulty planning and organizing
- Difficulty with coordination and motor functions
- Confusion and disorientation
Psychological Changes
- personality changes
- Depression
- anxiety
- inappropriate behavior
- Paranoia
- Agitation
- hallucinations
Go to doctor if you or a loved one has memory problems and other symptoms of dementia. Some treatable medical conditions can cause symptoms of dementia, so determining the cause is important.
Causes For Dementia
The disease is caused by damage or loss of nerve cells and their connections in the brain. Depending on the damaged brain’s area, dementia can affect people differently and cause different symptoms.
The group of dementias is different in what they have in common, such as the protein(s) deposited in the brain or the part of the brain that is affected. Some conditions resemble dementias, such as those caused by drug reactions or vitamin deficiencies, and may improve with treatment.
Type Of Dementia
Many types of dementias progress and are not reversible, including the following:
Alzheimer’s Disease
We know that it is the most common cause of dementia. Although we do not know all causes of Alzheimer’s, experts know that a small percentage are related to mutations in three genes, which can come from parents to children. Although several different genes are likely to be involved in Alzheimer’s, one important gene that increases risk is apolipoprotein E4 (APOE).
Patients with Alzheimer’s disease have plaques and tangles in the brain. Plaques are clumps of a protein called amyloid beta, and tangles are fibrous tangles made of tau protein. We think the so-called clumps damage healthy neurons and the fibers that connect them.
Vascular Dementia
Any damage to the vessels that supply blood to the brain causes the second most common type of dementia. The problems of Blood vessels can cause strokes or affect the brain in other ways, such as by damaging the gray matter fibers of the brain.
Difficulty in solving problems, slow thinking, and losing concentration and organization are some of The most common symptoms of vascular dementia. These tend to be more noticeable than a loss of memory.
Dementia With Lewy Bodies
Lewy bodies are abnormal, balloon-shaped clumps of proteins found in the brains of people with dementia with Lewy bodies, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. We have noted that it is one of the most common types of progressive dementia.
Common signs and symptoms include physically acting out dreams during sleep, seeing things that aren’t there (visual hallucinations), and problems with concentration and attention. Other symptoms include slow or uncoordinated movements, tremors, and stiffness.
Frontotemporal Dementia
Brain areas have an association with personality, behavior, and language. It is a ‘group of diseases’ with characteristic features on account of the nerve cells’ breakdown besides their connections in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. Common symptoms may affect the person’s behavior, personality, thinking, judgment, language, and movement.
Mixed Dementia
The study of Autopsy of the brains of people aged 80 and older with dementia indicates that it is a combination of several causes. It includes Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, and dementia with Lewy bodies. We know that researchers are also conducting a study to determine how mixed dementia affects symptoms and treatments.
Dementia Diagnosis
We can not determine if a person has dimentia by a single test that determines. Based on medical history, a physical exam, laboratory tests, and the characteristic changes in thinking, daily functions, and behavior associated with each type, doctors diagnose Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia based.
Doctors can also determine if a person has dementia with a high level of certainty. However, it is more difficult to determine the exact type of dementia because different dementias’ symptoms and brain changes can overlap. Sometimes, a doctor may diagnose “dementia,” but he may not specify the type of the disease. T may be necessary to see a specialist. In cases this occurs, such as a neurologist or a neuropsychologist.
Treatment Of Dementia
Most types of dementia have no cure. But there are ways to manage symptoms. The following are used to improve symptoms of dementia temporarily.
Cholinesterase Inhibitors
The effect of these drugs may increase levels of a chemical messenger involved in memory and reasoning.
Although primarily used to treat Alzheimer’s, it may also prescribe these drugs to treat other dementias, such as vascular dementia, Parkinson’s disease dementia, etc.
There are some of the side effects such as ‘Vomiting and diarrhea. Other possible side effects are ‘decreased heart rate’ fainting and sleep disturbances.
Memantine
The work of ‘Memantine’ is to regulate the activity of glutamate, another chemical messenger involved in brain functions such as learning and memory. In some cases, they prescribe memantine with a cholinesterase inhibitor.
Vertigo is The most common side effect of ‘memantine.’
Other Medication
Sometimes your doctor might prescribe medications to treat other symptoms or disorders, such as depression, sleep disturbances, hallucinations, and parkinsonism.
A doctor may initially treat Several of the symptoms of dementia and behavioral problems using non-pharmacological approaches, such as the following:
Occupational Therapy
Please note that an ‘Occupational Therapist’ can show you how to make your home safer and teach you coping strategies. The purpose of it is to prevent accidents such as falls, control behavior, and prepare you for the course of dementia.
Modification Of The Environment
Reduction of clutter and noise can make it easier for a person with dementia to focus and take action. You may need to hide items that could be a safety hazard, such as knives and car keys. You can use monitoring systems to alert you if the person with dementia wanders.
Simplify Tasks
Structure and routine also help decrease confusion in people with dementia. Break tasks down into simpler steps. Also, please focus on success instead of failure.
