Is Dementia A Progressive Brain Dysfunction - 1016 Words

In order to be diagnosed with dementia, one must suffer a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life. While symptoms of dementia can vary greatly, the most common indicators are memory issues, communication and language impairment, and the loss of ability to focus and pay attention. Symptoms of dementia often tend to start out slowly and then gradually progress over time. Most of the types of dementia continue to worsen and are usually irreversible. Observable dementia signs may include: asking the same questions repeatedly, becoming lost in familiar locations, being unable to follow simple directions, getting disorientated about time, people and places, and a loss in attentiveness for personal hygiene. There is no distinct test that can show whether a person has dementia. Diagnosing dementia requires careful medical evaluation, including a thorough medical history and many neurological exams and tests. While physicians can almost always determine if a perso n has dementia, it may be difficult to determine the exact cause. Dementia is a progressive brain dysfunction. In Latin, dementia means irrationality, which results in a restriction of daily activities. Alzheimer’s disease was first identified more than 100 years ago, but research into its symptoms, causes, risk factors and treatment has only progressed in the last several years. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, in 1906, German physician Alois Alzheimer was â€Å"one of the first to linkShow MoreRelatedDescribe the Type of Memory Loss794 Words   |  4 Pagesindividuals with dementia. Memory problems are usually the most obvious symptom in people with dementia. For example, a person with early stages of dementia might go to the shops and then cannot remember what they wanted. It is also common to misplace objects. As dementia progresses, sometimes memory loss for recent events is severe and the person may appear to be living in the past. They may think of themselves as young and not recognise their true age. At first, someone with dementia may appear toRead MoreDisease : Alzheimer s And Parkinson s Disease Essay1508 Words   |  7 PagesAbstract: Neurodegenerative diseases are progressive disorders that mainly affect neuronal cells and functions, and commonly characterized by abnormal protein metabolism and aggregations i.e. Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease, Prion diseases, Motor neurone disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Lou Gehrig’s disease, among others. Currently, there is no single cure out there to treat these debilitating diseases. However, present therapies available eitherRead MoreDementia Is The Only Cause Death That Does Not Have A Cure972 Words   |  4 PagesDementia is the only cause of death that does not have a cure and cannot be prevented. It is the loss of mental functions such as thinking, memory, and reasoning that is severe enough to interfere with a person s daily functioning. Dementia is not the name of a specific disease itself, but rather a group of symptoms that are caused by various diseases or conditions. This is refer red to as an umbrella term, a phrase that covers a broad interval or set of functions or items that all fall under a singleRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease ( Ad ) Essay1112 Words   |  5 Pages Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly, accounting for 65–70% of all cases (Jellinger, Janetzky, Attems, Kienzl, 2008). The other dementias are of the Parkinson s group, the fronto-temporal group and the vascular group. The total worldwide yearly costs for the treatment and care of patients suffering from dementia are estimated to be around 250 billion US dollars. The lifetime risk for AD between the ages of 65 and 100 is 33% for men and 45% for women withRead MoreSymptoms And Diagnosis Of Dementia987 Words   |  4 PagesAn estimated 47.5 million people suffer from dementia. Every 4 seconds one new case of dementia is diagnosed. Dementia is a term that describes certain symptoms such as impairment to memory, communication and thinking. It is a g roup of symptoms and not just one illness. Even though one‘s chance of getting dementia increase with age, it is not a part of aging. Dementia is usually diagnosed after a series of assessments that includes a physical evaluation, memory tests, imaging studies and bloodRead MoreAlzheimer s Disease : The Most Common Form Of Dementia1427 Words   |  6 PagesDementia, known as one of the world s current pandemics, is estimated to be the fourth most common cause of death in the developed country, second only to cardiovascular, cerebrovascular diseases and cancer. With the aging population, dementia has gradually become a serious threat to the health of the elderly people in Australia. Alzheimer s disease is the most common form of dementia. Alzheimer s disease usually occurs in a primary degenerative encephalopathy in senile and pre senior periodRead MoreSymptoms And Symptoms Of Alzheimer Disease1176 Words   |  5 PagesAlzheimer disease What is Alzheimer disease? Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia in the United States. It usually starts with recent memory loss – then progresses to forgetting where you are, familiar faces and names. Eventually, the disease continues to progress and patients develop impaired mobility, difficulty swallowing, and inability to care for themselves. Alzheimer disease is a major cause of disability and death in the United States. Due to the importance of this conditionRead MoreDementia And It s Types Essay1429 Words   |  6 PagesDementia and it s types Dementia is a syndrome caused by multiple progressive illnesses that affects memory, thinking, orientation, behaviour, comprehension, calculation, judgement, learning capacity, language, and loss of motivation and emotional control. The syndrome is characterized by Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with lewy bodies, vascular dementia, and frontotemporal dementia. Dementia mainly affects older people. Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. Prevalence 44.4Read MoreTypes of Dementia1550 Words   |  7 PagesDEMENTIA’S Dementia is a vague term used to describe a person that has loss of memory and change in behavior and activities. It goes beyond the forgetfulness and absent minded. It is commonly used In reference to the elderly, when cognitive abilities start to slip from one’s own control. Dementia cannot be diagnosed due to memory loss alone. It must be accompanied by two or more interruptions of brain function. Individuals who suffer from a disease that causes dementia undergo a number of changesRead MoreThe Disease Of Alzheimer s Disease1385 Words   |  6 Pagesthat was created that argues that â€Å"overproduction and decreased clearance of A-beta proteins drives all other downstream components of AD down† (Chen). â€Å"These components include neurofibrillary tangles, neuronal and synaptic loss and cognitive dysfunction† (Chen). This along with other neural stem cell (NSCs) treatments can all be used to delay the symptoms of AD. This will benefit the patient because it will delay the AD from taking over the patient’s body and memory. This will also help the patient