Have you ever walked into a room
and forgotten why you walked in there? Or have you frantically looked for your
car keys thinking that you knew exactly where they were, but they were nowhere
to be found? Those types of situations, looked at individually, do not mean you
are developing dementia. They could simply be classified as mild forgetfulness,
which is a normal part of aging. However, if you find your keys, but don’t know
what to do with them, you may want to seek medical advice.
I often hear statements like, “My
mother has Alzheimer’s disease” or “My father-in-law has dementia.” These terms
seem to be used interchangeably frequently. Many people believe they mean the
same thing; the fact that they have different meanings confuses patients,
families and caregivers.
Dementia
is the general loss of cognitive functions, like thinking and remembering
things. Alzheimer’s disease is one of several types of dementia. Types of dementia
include (but are not limited to):
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Lewy body dementia
- Frontotemporal disorders
- Vascular dementia
Alzheimer’s Disease
According to the Center for
Disease Control, the 5.4 million people with Alzheimer’s disease account for 50
to 70 percent of all dementia cases. This is the most common form of dementia,
which is why many people use these terms interchangeably.
Plaque may build-up between nerve
cells and tangles (twisted fibers of another protein) inside cells, which may
happen as people age. This plaque is much more developed for those people with
Alzheimer’s.
Symptoms of Alzheimer’s may
include impaired thought or speech, and confusion. The symptom that is most
common in the early stages of Alzheimer’s is difficulty remembering something
new. That is why someone might remember an event from decades earlier, but not
what they did earlier that day. Over time, however, this recall may continue to
get worse. Other symptoms may develop, such as deepening confusion, mood
changes, more serious memory loss and even difficulty speaking, swallowing and
walking.
Unlike some other forms of
dementia, Alzheimer’s is degenerative; currently there is no cure for it. Scientists
are trying to figure out how the plaque build-up affects this disease. The good
news is that there has been a lot of progress in the last 15 years that could
lead to new treatments to help reduce its effects or possibly provide a cure.
Lewy Body Dementia
Named for scientist, Friederich H. Lewy, who discovered irregular protein
deposits in the brain stem in the early 1900’s, Lewy Body dementia (LBD) affects
approximately 1.4 million Americans. These abnormal protein deposits found in
the brain stem disrupt the brain's normal functioning.
The symptoms of Lewy Body
dementia are similar to Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease dementia,
so this lesser-known form of dementia has been underdiagnosed. However, the
core features of LBD include:
- Cognition impairment, with attention and alertness deficits
- Visual hallucinations
- Sudden Parkinson-related symptoms
Because of the type of disease,
people with LBD require wide-ranging treatment. The goal is to find the best
treatment for each portion of the disease, without worsening symptoms from
other areas. However, these treatments will simply slow the progression of the
disease; there is no cure for it at this time.
Frontotemporal disorders
Frontotemporal
dementia is caused by nerve cell damage
to the frontal or temporal lobes of the brain. The degeneration of the lobes
can cause a decline in behavior and personality, language, and muscle/motor
skills. This disease generally affects people in their 50s and 60s, but has
been found in people as young as in their 20s or as old as in their 80s.
At this time, the only known risk
factor for frontotemporal dementia is genetics, which is the leading cause in
about a third of these dementia cases. Unlike other forms of dementia, this
disorder does not have any treatments to delay the progression of the disease,
only medication to reduce anxiety or depression.
Because of the decline in muscle
and motor skills, patients tend to wind up wheelchair or bed-bound, with issues
chewing, swallowing, moving and other motor skills.
Vascular dementia
Vascular dementia is caused by a
lack of blood flow to the brain, caused by a variety of conditions. A lack of
blood flow to any part of the body could kill cells, but it is even more
damaging to the brain, where there is the biggest network of blood vessels in
the body. This might happen after a stroke and could get worse if a person has
a series of small strokes.
When the brain does not get enough blood, the
result is a decline in thinking skills. This decline could be mild, but could worsen if a person has a series of strokes or other conditions that block the
blood flow.
Symptoms of vascular dementia (or vascular
cognitive impairment, a term some experts want to use) can vary depending on
what area of the brain is damaged from the lack of blood flow. If the portion
of the brain that controls memory is not affected, a person’s memory may not be
affected either. Other symptoms may include confusion, disorientation,
difficulty speaking and/or vision loss. These symptoms may be more obvious
right after someone has a stroke, but could improve during recovery. However, symptoms
could get worse if a person has another stoke or a series of mini-strokes.
As with other forms of dementia, there is no
cure for this disease. Controlling risk factors, such as no smoking, lowering
blood pressure and weight, exercising and maintaining a healthy weight could
help prevent additional decline.
What can you do?
If you think you or your loved
one may have more pronounced memory loss, your doctor can perform a series of
screenings, such as blood tests, brain scans or mental evaluations, to confirm the
type of dementia you or a loved one has.
Our owner, Richard Ueberfluss, has earned the
designation of Certified Dementia Practitioner® from the National Council of
Certified Dementia Practitioners. This Council was formed to promote standards
of excellence in dementia education to professionals and other caregivers who
provide services to dementia clients. Its goal, as is the goal of its members,
is to develop and encourage comprehensive standards of excellence in
direct-care skills, education and sensitivity in the area of dementia care.
Richard is committed to those standards and shares them with everyone at Assisting
Hands® Home Care.
We provide our clients with home care so they get the help they
need, whether they have mental or physical struggles. We want them to stay safely
in their own home for longer. We also provide a respite for you, the family
caregiver. Whether you need someone to be with your senior loved one during the
day, in the evening or overnight, our at-home care can accommodate your needs.
You will have peace of mind knowing that they aren’t home alone when they need
help with medication, fall prevention, personal care, eating or other needs.
Contact us today to schedule your free
in-home fall prevention assessment at 630-305-9100. To learn more about our in
home senior care from LaGrange to Naperville, Wheaton to Willowbrook, click here.
