The Causes Of Dementia

Dementia is a difficult problem and is typified by a loss of brain function which occurs with a number of different diseases. It can affect memory, language, judgment and overall behavior.

Most kinds of dementia are irreversible. This means that the mechanism which causes the dementia cannot be reversed. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease.
In addition lewy body disease is the leading cause of dementia in elderly patients. For some reason the patients which suffer with this disease have abnormal protein structures in their brains.

Dementia can also be caused by strokes. This type of problem is called vascular dementia. There are a number of other medical conditions which can lead to dementia. This can include: Parkinson’s disease; multiple sclerosis; Huntington’s disease; Pick’s disease; and Progressive supranuclear palsy.

Some of the causes of dementia can be stopped or even reversed if they are caught soon enough. This can include: brain tumors; changes in blood sugar, sodium or calcium levels; low vitamin B12 levels; or the use of certain medications.

Dementia usually occurs in people over 60 years of age. It is rare for younger patients and risk for dementia increases as people grow older.

The most common symptoms for dementia include: difficultly with language; memory problems; problems with perception; emotional behavior or changes in personality; deterioration in cognitive skills such as abstract thinking, judgment or calculation.

As the symptoms of dementia worsen, it can interfere with the ability to take care of oneself. These people may also: forget details about current events; forget events in your own life; lose awareness of who you are; changes in sleep patterns; poor judgment and an inability to recognize danger.

Severe dementia symptoms may prevent people understanding language; recognizing family members or even the ability to eat, dress and bathe.
The symptoms of dementia can often be identified through a number of different tests. Your doctor may perform some of these tests if they feel there may be a potential risk of symptoms. A typical test is called a mental status evaluation.

It is important to eliminate other factors which may be making the symptoms worse. In general the symptoms of dementia cannot be reversed and there is no cure. However there are some treatments available to slow the progression and improve the patient’s quality of life. These range from drug treatments to mental exercises. By applying some of these treatments, the progression of dementia can be slowed and the patient spared further deterioration of brain function.