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People most often consider Dementia as a disease that causes decline in mental abilities and memory loss. However, it is not a disease. So what is dementia? Well, it's a general term used for different problems that results in decline in mental abilities like memory loss. Hence dementia is not any specific disease but an overall term describing different symptoms associated with decline in mental abilities and reduce the capacity of a person to perform daily activities. Alzheimer is most common dementia. About 60 to 80% cases of dementia are related to it.
There are many factors that may put one at a risk to dementia; while some of these factors are natural others can be changed. Natural causes of dementia includes the Alzheimer disease which is associated with old age and heredity in which case the patient develops the condition after acquiring the gene predisposing him to dementia from the parents or great grandparents.
Dementia is also classified as a lifestyle condition that can affect anyone due acquired behavior such as consuming large amount of alcohol and smoking marijuana. Other lifestyle disease that are so much related to dementia due to change of eating habits include; diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Dementia always starts with short term memory loss affecting the way the people talk and think. People often tend to forget the words they want to speak and can also have issues in planning. If the disease affects that part of the brain which controls emotions, then people can feel angry, depressed, frustrated, sad or frightened.
When should you see the doctor? If you note any signs that may suggest dementia, it is advisable to immediately visit a qualified physician who will perform a confirmatory test. He will then identify the cause and give you the right medication to treat the condition. Some conditions are treatable and the patient can fully recover from dementia while in others such as Alzheimer and Parkinson dementia worsens with time.
In most of the cases the changes in brain resulting in dementia are permanent and gets worse with time. However the condition may improve with proper care if the dementia is caused due to depression, excess use of alcohol, vitamin deficiencies, thyroid problems etc.
There is no definite test to determine if a person has dementia. Doctors can however diagnose different types of dementias including Alzheimer through physical examination, change in mental abilities, laboratory tests etc. Doctors can determine if a person has dementia with certainty but it's harder to determine the type of dementia as the symptoms of different dementia overlaps. In most of the cases, doctors diagnosis the dementia but fails to specify its type. In such cases the person should contact to psychologist or neurologist.
In addition, take them to the hospital and make sure they have taken the medicine a s prescribed by the doctor. If the cause is due to old age or Alzheimer you can improve the condition by helping the patient exercise in order to increase blood flow to the brain and prevent stiffening of the muscle.
As we have already seen dementia is a condition that affects the mind and may be attributed to old age, illness or change of lifestyle. The condition can be contained if the cause is identified and treated at an early stage; however this may not be possible if the cause is related to old age.
There are many factors that may put one at a risk to dementia; while some of these factors are natural others can be changed. Natural causes of dementia includes the Alzheimer disease which is associated with old age and heredity in which case the patient develops the condition after acquiring the gene predisposing him to dementia from the parents or great grandparents.
Dementia is also classified as a lifestyle condition that can affect anyone due acquired behavior such as consuming large amount of alcohol and smoking marijuana. Other lifestyle disease that are so much related to dementia due to change of eating habits include; diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
Dementia always starts with short term memory loss affecting the way the people talk and think. People often tend to forget the words they want to speak and can also have issues in planning. If the disease affects that part of the brain which controls emotions, then people can feel angry, depressed, frustrated, sad or frightened.
When should you see the doctor? If you note any signs that may suggest dementia, it is advisable to immediately visit a qualified physician who will perform a confirmatory test. He will then identify the cause and give you the right medication to treat the condition. Some conditions are treatable and the patient can fully recover from dementia while in others such as Alzheimer and Parkinson dementia worsens with time.
In most of the cases the changes in brain resulting in dementia are permanent and gets worse with time. However the condition may improve with proper care if the dementia is caused due to depression, excess use of alcohol, vitamin deficiencies, thyroid problems etc.
There is no definite test to determine if a person has dementia. Doctors can however diagnose different types of dementias including Alzheimer through physical examination, change in mental abilities, laboratory tests etc. Doctors can determine if a person has dementia with certainty but it's harder to determine the type of dementia as the symptoms of different dementia overlaps. In most of the cases, doctors diagnosis the dementia but fails to specify its type. In such cases the person should contact to psychologist or neurologist.
In addition, take them to the hospital and make sure they have taken the medicine a s prescribed by the doctor. If the cause is due to old age or Alzheimer you can improve the condition by helping the patient exercise in order to increase blood flow to the brain and prevent stiffening of the muscle.
As we have already seen dementia is a condition that affects the mind and may be attributed to old age, illness or change of lifestyle. The condition can be contained if the cause is identified and treated at an early stage; however this may not be possible if the cause is related to old age.
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Learn more about the stages of dementia. Stop by the website where you can find out all about Dementia and what it is and the different available treatments.
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