Symptoms Of Dementia In The Elderly: Dementia Prognosis, Treatment

Symptoms Of Dementia In The Elderly: Dementia Prognosis, Treatment . Old age is not a disease. The main problem among elderly is preservation of health, rehabilitation after sickness and someone to take care of. Several diseases crop up as a person grows old. Most of them are chronic. With rise in the number of aged population all over the world, the number of persons suffering from dementia is progressively on the rise. Besides, elderly who develop dementia are living longer after its onset, mainly because of the success in treating diseases which were previously considered fatal, example pneumonia.

Dementia is a clinical syndrome.

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It can be described as progressive loss of mental function which may affect the memory, attention, language, emotions and ability of solving any problems. In USA itself, at least 4% above the age of 60 are incapacitated by dementia and another 10% have symptoms of developing dementia. Dementia in a patient cannot be diagnosed when he is drowsy, or in a state of stupor or coma or in a condition where evaluation of his mental status is difficult.

Diagnosis Of Dementia In Elderly Persons

Diagnosis of dementia in elderly is based on behavior and comparing it with patient’s previous level of memory and cognitive functions.

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It means clinical examination and neuropsychological analysis aids the physician to diagnose the ailment. CT scan, electroencephalogram and other laboratory instruments cannot determine dementia, but help in identifying the causes.

Even though the exact cause of dementia in elderly is poorly understood, destruction and degeneration of brain cells (neuron) is considered to be the main cause for dementia in elderly. Degenerative disease like Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s chorea and Parkinson disease, brain stroke are the leading causes in aged individuals. Unfortunately there is no treatment for dementia in patients suffering from these degenerative diseases.

In a small percentage of elderly individuals, dementia has a treatable cause for example nutritional deficiency of vitamin B1, folic acid and vitamin B12. Alcoholism, drug toxicity, hypothyroidism, neurosyphilis, brain abscess, brain hematoma due to injury, neoplasm are some other causes of dementia in old age that can be treated.

Dementia Symptoms In Elderly

The onset of dementia in elderly is generally gradual. They may be manifested as follows:

• Sleep disturbance: difficulty and disturbance in sleep is the initial symptom faced by elderly who is developing dementia. The pattern in his sleep and wake cycle may change drastically.
• Memory loss: forgetfulness is common symptom in elderly dementia. There is short term as well as long term memory loss. Forgetfulness becomes worse as the disease progresses. Forgets names of familiar persons. Forgets appointments and repeats the same words.
• Communication problems: patient is not able to speak coherently. He finds difficulty in understanding spoken words. He has difficulty in finding right words.
• Impaired motor skill: Improper gait, finds difficulty in writing, driving, cooking, etc.
• Mood swing: sudden changes of mood. At times he is happy and suddenly he becomes melancholic.

As the disorder progresses, his judgment becomes poor and faces greater risk of fall and accidents. He loses interest with the surrounding; he cannot concentrate on certain thing for long time. Gets confused in places he is familiar to.

Dementia In The Elderly Prognosis

Prognosis of dementia in elderly is not encouraging. The irreversible damage to brain cells may worsen as time passes. It may increase gradually until the death of the elderly person. The time taken may vary from patient to patient. For example, some patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease may live for 15 to 20 years, in a demented state. However on an average, the elderly may live for 7 years if the cause of dementia is irreversible. If the cause is detected and treated early in elderly individuals, dementia can have better outcome provided it is detected early. These causes include Vitamin deficiency, hypothyroidism, drug toxicity, alcoholism etc.

Dementia in elderly is mostly irreversible. However it can have encouraging results if treatable and modifiable etiology is found. In most cases, the condition is symptomatically managed. This necessitates a team approach which involves the patient, his physician, his near and dear ones which include family members, friends, etc. The main aim is to improve the quality of life.

Treatment For Dementia In The Elderly

• Keep the elderly active by giving him some tasks. This helps his mind to become sharp.
• Nutritious food that contains vitamins and minerals is helpful.
• Abstain from alcohol.
• Regular exercise such as walking in the initial stage may help to delay the progression.
• Ginkgo biloba is a natural herb known for its action on brain in promoting circulation.
• Intake of Siberian ginseng may also delay the progression of brain cells degeneration in elderly demented patient.
• Evening prime rose oil, coenzyme Q 10, vitamin supplementations are useful in such cases.
• Homeopathic medicines such as Baryta carb, Alumina, are useful in mental impairment, childish behavior, and difficulties decision making.
• Curcumin present in turmeric is believed to provide shield to the brain cells. Since degeneration of brain cells is one of the causes of senile dementia, regular use of pinch of turmeric powder is useful in senile dementia.