Does Vascular Dementia Come And Go

Lewy Body Dementia Vs Parkinsons Disease Dementia

Diagnoses of Lewy body dementia include dementia with Lewy bodies and Parkinsons disease dementia. Symptoms in both of these diagnoses can be similar.

Lewy body dementia is a progressive dementia caused by abnormal deposits of a protein called alpha-synuclein in the brain. Lewy bodies are also seen in Parkinsons disease.

The overlap in symptoms between Lewy body dementia and Parkinsons disease dementia include movement symptoms, rigid muscles, and problems with thinking and reasoning.

This seems to indicate that they could be linked to the same abnormalities, though more research is needed to confirm that.

The later stages of Parkinsons disease have more severe symptoms that may require help moving around, around-the-clock care, or a wheelchair. Quality of life can decline rapidly.

Risks of infection, incontinence, pneumonia, falls, insomnia, and choking increase.

Hospice care, memory care, home health aides, social workers, and support counselors can be a help in later stages.

Parkinsons disease itself isnt fatal, but complications can be.

Research has shown a median survival rate of about

Signs Of Vascular Dementia

If you or the people around you notice any of the signs below, you should visit your GP:

• Not being able to understand or respond to things very quickly.
• Not being able to remember things.
• Finding it difficult to concentrate.
• Not being able to find the right word when youre speaking.
• Struggling to plan ahead for everyday tasks.
• Difficulty in learning new tasks
• Seeming down or depressed.

At a later stage, signs may include:

• Becoming confused.
• Behaving differently, especially if youre being aggressive or behaving inappropriately.
• Lacking motivation.
• Not being able to control your emotions.
• Finding it difficult to walk and keep your balance.
• Having problems controlling your bladder.

Caregiving In The Late Stages

According to the Alzheimers Association, the later stages will be the most difficult, as your loved one is now very frail and relies on you for most of their daily care. At this late stage, encouraging your loved one to eat and sleep will grow increasingly difficult. During this time, they may lose the ability to walk steadily, so an occupational therapist may help them stay mobile without falling. Gather a team of experts to help you, like a speech therapist to help with communication and a nutritionist to recommend the best food and alternative food options, like blended meals, smoothies, and finger foods, that boost the immunity and are packed with nutrition. Incontinence, severe memory loss and disorientation, immune system problems, repetitive movements, and strange or unusual behavior must all be managed during this stage as well.

Watching a loved one live with dementia is never easy. With the proper tools, you can help them navigate their symptoms to live an enriching life. Staying on top of the latest research with Google alerts and attending seminars from expert speakers and medical professionals will keep you up-to-date on new treatments and care techniques. Most importantly, find a supportive community. There are many support groups for caregivers where you can share your successes, frustrations, fears, and joys with other caregivers. Remember, you are not alone!

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Stage : Moderately Severe Cognitive Decline

Stage 5 is when your loved one is likely to need help with routine tasks, like dressing or bathing. They may require a home caregiver or to move to a memory care community. Other symptoms include:

• Confusion/forgetfulness
• Memory loss of personal details and current events
• Reduced mental acuity and problem-solving ability

Stage : Mid Stage Semi Severe Vascular Dementia

Another one on the list of the vascular dementia stages that I would like to reveal in this article today and want you and my other readers to know if you are considering whether they get this disorder or not.

Loss of mobility: Many people gradually lose the ability of walking and performing everyday tasks. One of the first signs is that they walk unsteadily. They can also seem slower, bump into things and fall objects. Some people even become confined to a chair or bed. People who are caring for people with vascular dementia should ask for an advice from a community nurse or a therapist to aid mobility.

Memory loss: This symptom is very severe in the stages of vascular dementia. Patients may not be able to recognize other people who are close to them and even their own reflection. Also, they may not be able to find their way home around familiar surroundings or identify objects they use every day. However, occasionally, they may experience sudden flashes of recognition. They may believe that they are in a time from their past and may look for something or somebody from that time. For those around them, it may be helpful to try talking with them about the past. Even when they have severe memory loss, they still can appreciate or respond to music, touch and scent. Thus, continue to talk to them, even when they cannot respond.

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Stage : Moderate Dementia

Patients in stage 5 need some assistance in order to carry out their daily lives. The main sign for stage 5 dementia is the inability to remember major details such as the name of a close family member or a home address. Patients may become disoriented about the time and place, have trouble making decisions, and forget basic information about themselves, such as a telephone number or address.

While moderate dementia can interfere with basic functioning, patients at this stage do not need assistance with basic functions such as using the bathroom or eating. Patients also still have the ability to remember their own names and generally the names of spouses and children.

Single Infarct And Multi Infarct Dementia

These types of vascular dementia are the result of one or many smaller strokes. In this type of dementia, there is a blockage on large or medium blood vessels.

Nonetheless, the symptoms of this type may go unnoticed, as they are very small strokes. If the patient has any symptoms, they may last only a few minutes because the blockage clears itself.

If the symptoms last for less than 24 hours, this is a Transient Ischemic Attack or TIA. There are cases in which an infarct is enough to cause dementia, affecting an essential part of the brain.

On the other hand, there are other cases where there are a series of small strokes over weeks or months. Dementia, in these cases, is the result of the damage of all these small infarcts together.

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How Many Stages Of Dementia Are There

There are several different types of Dementia, with Alzheimers disease being the most common. Though when it comes to the different stages of Dementia, we can typically categorise the trajectory of the disease as mild, moderate or severe.

Although this three stage model is useful for providing an overview of early, middle and final stages of Dementia, most people prefer a seven stage model that breaks cognitive decline down into seven specific categories. The progression of Dementia will be different for everyone, but knowing where a loved one falls on this scale can help to identify signs and symptoms, whilst also determining the most appropriate care needs. So, what are the 7 stages of Dementia?

How Does Vascular Dementia Differ From Alzheimers Disease

There are certainly similarities between vascular dementia and Alzheimerâs disease, and in fact, mixed dementia is a type of disorder in which individuals have a combination of both vascular dementia and Alzheimerâs disease. Alzheimerâs disease is more common, as it is estimated that 60-80% of people with dementia have Alzheimerâs disease.

While many of the presenting symptoms are the same, major differences consist of onset and predisposing factors including different types of illness. Alzheimerâs disease generally has a slower onset, and people report symptoms such as memory difficulties, particularly in regard to recent activities or conversations. Vascular dementia, on the other hand, primarily affects judgment or ability to make decisions, as opposed to memory.

Vascular dementia occurs most often from blockage of blood vessels or damage that leads to tissue death in the brain . The location and size of this damage determines the extent of disease a person will experience, and the type of treatment.

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A Person With Dementia Doesnt Always Fit Into One Stage

Dementia affects each person in a unique way and changes different parts of the brain at different points in the disease progression.

Plus, different types of dementia tend to have different symptoms.

For example, someone with frontotemporal dementia may first show extreme behavior and personality changes. But someone with Alzheimers disease would first experience short-term memory loss and struggle with everyday tasks.

Researchers and doctors still dont know enough about how these diseases work to predict exactly what will happen.

Another common occurrence is for someone in the middle stages of dementia to suddenly have a clear moment, hour, or day and seem like theyre back to their pre-dementia abilities. They could be sharp for a little while and later, go back to having obvious cognitive impairment.

When this happens, some families may feel like their older adult is faking their symptoms or just isnt trying hard enough.

Its important to know that this isnt true, its truly the dementia thats causing their declining abilities as well as those strange moments of clarity theyre truly not doing it on purpose.

How Can Healthcare Professionals Help At This Stage

Healthcare professionals can explain these changes so you understand what is happening.

Healthcare professionals can also take steps to reduce the persons pain or distress, often using medication.

If the person cant swallow, then medication can be provided through patches on the skin, small injections or syringe pumps that provide a steady flow of medication through a small needle under the persons skin. Speak to a GP or another health professional about this.

Talking Point

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How Does Vascular Dementia Progress

Vascular dementia does not always have a typical progression that might be classified into stages, although its symptoms can generally be classified as fitting in the early stages, middle stages, or late stages of dementia.

Early stages of vascular dementia often include impaired memory, difficulty with executive functioning, word-finding difficulty, and a decline in attention. Mood and personality changes may also be seen in vascular dementia, and some people experience a decline in balance and walking.

Causes Of Vascular Dementia

Vascular dementia is caused by reduced blood flow to the brain, which damages and eventually kills brain cells.

This can happen as a result of:

• narrowing and blockage of the small blood vessels inside the brain
• a single stroke, where the blood supply to part of the brain is suddenly cut off
• lots of “mini strokes” that cause tiny but widespread damage to the brain

In many cases, these problems are linked to underlying conditions, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, and lifestyle factors, such as smoking and being overweight.

Tackling these might reduce your risk of vascular dementia in later life, although it’s not yet clear exactly how much your risk of dementia can be reduced.

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What Diseases Or Conditions May Worsen Dementia

Treatable disorders revealed by the diagnostic evaluation should receive prompt attention.

• Common, treatable conditions that cause or worsen dementia include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, infections, head injuries, brain tumors, hydrocephalus, anemia, hypoxia, hormone imbalances, and nutritional deficiencies.
• Treatment varies by disorder, but some treatments may rapidly reverse the dementia symptoms.

How Is Vascular Dementia Diagnosed

In addition to a complete medical history and physical exam, your healthcare provider may order some of the following:

• Computed tomography . This imaging test uses X-rays and a computer to make horizontal, or axial images of the brain. CT scans are more detailed than general X-rays.
• FDG-PET scan. This is a PET scan of the brain that uses a special tracer to light up regions of the brain.

• Electroencephalogram . This test measures electrical activity in the brain
• Magnetic resonance imaging . This test uses large magnets, radiofrequencies, and a computer to make detailed images of the brain.
• Neuropsychological assessments. These tests can help sort out vascular dementia from other types of dementia and Alzheimer’s.
• Neuropsychiatric evaluation. This may be done to rule out a psychiatric condition that may resemble dementia.

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Are Dementia Senility And Alzheimer’s Disease The Same Things

• Dementia occurs most commonly in elderly people it used to be called senility and/or senile dementia, and was considered a normal part of aging. Affected people were labeled as demented. The term “senile dementia” is infrequently used in the current medical literature and has been replaced by the term “dementia.”
• “Senile dementia,””senility,” and “demented” are older outdated terms that incorrectly label people with memory loss, confusion and other symptoms as a normal part of aging.
• Dementia, as defined above, is a constellation of ongoing symptoms that are not part of normal aging that have a large number of different causes, for example, Alzheimer’s disease is the major cause of dementia in individuals but it is only one of many problems that can cause dementia.

Symptoms of dementia vary considerably by the individual and the underlying cause of the dementia. Most people affected by dementia have some of these symptoms. The symptoms may be very obvious, or they may be very subtle and go unrecognized for some time. The first sign of dementia is usually loss of short-term memory. The person repeats what he just said or forgets where she put an object just a few minutes ago. Other symptoms and signs are as follows:

Early dementia symptoms and signs

As A Care Worker How Can You Help

There are many conditions and circumstances where you may see signs and symptoms that may be confused with dementia. As a care worker, it is not your responsibility to try to diagnose the condition. However, as you may be the one person who sees the individual on a regular basis, you are well placed to notice any changes. Encouraging an older person to visit their GP on a regular basis can help them to maintain their general health and wellbeing.

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Vascular Dementia Signs And Symptoms

Vascular dementia affects different people in different ways and the speed of the progression also varies from person to person. Some symptoms may be similar to those of other types of dementia and usually reflect increasing difficulty to perform everyday activities like eating, dressing, or shopping.

Behavioral and physical symptoms can come on dramatically or very gradually, although it appears that a prolonged period of TIAsthe mini-strokes discussed aboveleads to a gradual decline in memory, whereas a bigger stroke can produce profound symptoms immediately. Regardless of the rate of appearance, vascular dementia typically progresses in a stepwise fashion, where lapses in memory and reasoning abilities are followed by periods of stability, only to give way to further decline.

How Long Will A Person With Dementia Live For

Dementia is a life-limiting condition, but it is very difficult to know how long someone with dementia will live for. This depends on many factors.

If the person also has another life-limiting condition , it may be clearer how long they may live for and how they will die.

A person may die from another condition at any stage of having dementia. Because of this, they may die before their dementia symptoms become very advanced.

A person in the later stages of dementia may get worse slowly over many months. During this time they will usually:

• become more frail
• have more frequent falls or infections
• have problems eating, drinking and swallowing
• be more likely to need urgent medical care
• become less mobile
• sleep more
• talk less often.

A person in the later stages of dementia is likely to have a weak immune system. This means they have a higher risk of getting infections, which in some cases can last for a long time. One of the most common causes of death for people with dementia is pneumonia caused by an infection.

A person in the later stages of dementia may have symptoms that suggest that they are close to death, but can sometimes live with these symptoms for many months. This uncertainty makes it very difficult to plan and put things in place for the end of someones life.

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It’s Never Too Late To Work On Improving Brain Health

Sometimes, people feel that after a love one receives a diagnosis of dementia, it’s too late to do anything about it. Part of that response may be related to the normal grieving process after a diagnosis, but many caregivers have expressed that they really didn’t know that brain health strategies can truly make a difference in functioning, whether cognition is normal or already declining.

Instead, remember that while true dementia won’t go away and generally is progressive, there are still a lot of strategies that can be used to maintain and even improve brain health and functioning for a time in dementia. Physical exercise, mental activity, and meaningful activities can go a long way toward maintaining functioning and providing purpose in daily life.

Who Can Diagnose Dementia

Visiting a primary care doctor is often the first step for people who are experiencing changes in thinking, movement, or behavior. However, neurologists doctors who specialize in disorders of the brain and nervous system are often consulted to diagnose dementia. Geriatric psychiatrists, neuropsychologists, and geriatricians may also be able to diagnose dementia. Your doctor can help you find a specialist.

If a specialist cannot be found in your community, contact the nearest medical school neurology department for a referral. A medical school hospital also may have a dementia clinic that provides expert evaluation. You can also visit the Alzheimers Disease Research Centers directory to see if there is an NIA-funded center near you. These centers can help with obtaining a diagnosis and medical management of conditions.

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