Although Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia, there are other types of mentaly debilitating diseases that followunder the dementia heading.
Here are just a few:
Vascular or multi-infarct dementia
This type of dementia is similar to Alzheimer’s disease and runs a close second in terms of how often it strikes when compared to Alzheimer’sdisease. Symptoms are the common loss of memory, difficulty following instructions, as well as confusion. Although it causes a steady decline in cognitive abilities, it usually occurs in “stages or steps” instead of the charactaristic routine of Alzheimer’s disease.This is caused in part by small strokes which block smaller arteries, too small to cause major symptoms, but their combined effect is noticeable over a period of time. Low blood flow to parts of the brain is the culprit in this case.
Mixed Dementia
Certain experts believe that the combination of vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is very common, and refer to it as mixed dementia.
Injury to the brain
Actual physical injury to the brain accounts for another form of dementia which includes symptoms such as memory loss and/or behavioral changes.
Frontotemporal dementia (Pick’s disease)
Although rare, when this type of dementia occurs, it is diffucult at times to tell the difference between it and Alzheimer’s. Symptoms start before memory loss, such as disorientation and personality changes.
Parkinson’s disease
This debilitating disease starts by affecting muscle control, causing stiffness, impaired speech and tremors, with dementia occuring in later stages.
Dementia with Lewy bodies
This type of dementia is characterized by wide variations in alertness and attention, with victims experiencing muscle rigidity as well as tremors usually found in Parkinson’s disease sufferers.
Huntington’s disease
This type of dementia is inherited, causing progressive odd movements of the legs, facial muscles and arms. There is a marked change in thepersonality of the victim as well as the inability to think coherantly.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)
This type of dementia is very rare. It has been identified as the disorder believed to be the result of eating “mad cow disease” infected meat. It destroys coordination and memory, often rapidly. It also makes marked changes in the victims behavior.
Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH)
This type of dementia is caused by a buildup of fluid in the brain. Surgery is sometimes used to drain the fluid off the brain. NPH victims show signs of inability to control urine, difficulty walking, and memory loss. Doctors are unable to determine the cause of most cases.
One thing to consider when faced with the task of determining a loved ones cause of dementia is that doctors will label an individual as afflicted with MCI (mild cognitive impairment) if they are exhibiting signs of memory loss or loss of cognitive skills. MCI does not always lead toAlzheimer’s disease, but there is an increased occurence of this happening when diagnosed with MCI.
As you can see, there are many different variations of dementia, all destructive to the victim’s brain, but not all are cases of Alzheimer’s disease.
The best defense is knowledge and a great medical team.
Darlene
The numbers are in and it is frightning…one out of ten people over the age of 65 have Alzheimer’s disease. In fact, in a recent statistic polls, 5.3 million Americans suffer one way or the other from this dreaded progressive disease.
Out of that 5.3 million Americans, 200,000 are ages 30-50.
Below is some information that you will find useful about this disease.
What is Alzheimer’s disease?
Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative problem characterized by memory loss as well as loss in thinking skills. It is actually part of a constellation of memory and brain problems called dementia. It can lead to behavioral changes, loss of language skills, disorientation, confusion and increasing dependency. Most experts believe that Alzheimer’s is caused by a problem in the genetic make-up and is often associated with old age.
What are the signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease?
In the beginning stages, it is not easy to determine that Alzheimer’s is the culprit simply because the onset of the disease will often manifest in symptoms often associated with forgetfulness due to aging. What separates this problem though is the fact that people with Alzheimer’s will eventually even forget normal routines and simple tasks. For instance, patients with Alzheimer’s can forget how to hold a spoon and fork while others will forget how to brush their teeth and take a bath. Believe it or not, some medical experts even say that some may even forget how to breathe. It can start with ordinary forgetting of names and faces until it progresses to something major that can render the person totally incapacitated.
Who are affected by Alzheimer’s disease?
Although there are cases of Alzheimer’s that affected people in their 30s, most patients are over the age of 65 and a vast majority is over the age of 85. In addition to old age, experts believe that a family history of the same problem or of dementia may predispose someone to the disease. This is because experts pinpoint a defect in the genetic make up of the person who has Alzheimer’s disease.
People who are not regularly pursueing mental activities or employment that do not involve mental strains have a higher risk of developing the disease compared to people who often stretch their mental muscles either through work or play. In fact, one of the ways to prevent the onset of dementia is to exercise the brain all the time especially for older individuals. Even when one is already retired from work, the elderly should not forget to use their minds by engaging in mental pursuits such as reading, doing crossword puzzles and even playing board games.
How do you diagnose Alzheimer’s Disease?
As mentioned earlier, it is extremely difficult for a person to differentiate an ordinary case of forgetfulness and dementia at the beginning of the disease. Some of the symptoms, such as slow mental processing and forgetfulness may be attributed to other problems such as thyroid gland problems, reactions to medications that are being taken, and even just a normal aging process. To really ensure that the problem is indeed Alzheimer’s, doctors rule out other possibilities and conduct series of tests. These may include brain imaging, neurological tests, physical exams and anything else the doctor feels will help determine if Alzheimer’s is the culprit.
Hopefully this article will help answer some questions you may have had.
Mary