HealthyCanada.com

Dementia is not a specific disease but rather a descriptive term for a collection of symptoms that can be caused by a number of disorders that affect the brain. One in 13 Canadians over the age of 65 has dementia. Although it is common in seniors dementia is not a normal part of the aging process.

People with dementia have significantly impaired intellectual functioning that interferes with normal activities and relationships. They also lose their ability to solve problems and maintain emotional control and they may experience personality changes and behavioral problems such as agitation delusions and hallucinations. While memory loss is a common symptom of dementia memory loss by itself does not mean that a person has dementia.

Doctors diagnose dementia only if two or more brain functions - such as memory and language skills -- are significantly impaired without loss of consciousness. The most common form of dementia Alzheimer's disease accounts for 50-75% of all cases of dementia. Another 20-30% is due to blood vessel disease ("multi-infarct dementia" or "mini-strokes"). The remaining cases result from a variety of less common disorders including vascular dementia Lewy body dementia frontotemporal dementia Huntington's disease and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Scientists have identified other conditions that can cause dementia or dementia-like symptoms including reactions to medications metabolic problems and endocrine abnormalities nutritional deficiencies infections poisoning brain tumors anoxia or hypoxia (conditions in which the brain's oxygen supply is either reduced or cut off entirely) and heart and lung problems.

Treatment

There are drugs which can be used to specifically treat Alzheimer's disease and some other progressive dementias. Although these drugs do not halt the disease or reverse existing brain damage they can improve symptoms and slow the progression of the disease.

Many people with dementia particularly those in the early stages may benefit from practicing tasks designed to improve performance in specific aspects of cognitive functioning. For example people can sometimes be taught to use memory aids such as mnemonics computerized recall devices or note taking.

Additional Resources:

Alzheimer Society