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.
Stage : Mild Dementia
At this stage, individuals may start to become socially withdrawn and show changes in personality and mood. Denial of symptoms as a defense mechanism is commonly seen in stage 4. Behaviors to look for include:
- Difficulty remembering things about one’s personal history
- Difficulty recognizing faces and people
In stage 4 dementia, individuals have no trouble recognizing familiar faces or traveling to familiar locations. However, patients in this stage will often avoid challenging situations in order to hide symptoms or prevent stress or anxiety.
Alzheimers Disease: What You Need To Know As You Age
An estimated 5.2 million Americans are living withAlzheimers disease, the most common form ofdementiain the world and the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.Todays statistics are just the tip of the iceberg, however. By 2025, thenumber of people afflicted will top 7 milliona 40 percent jumpas babyboomers continue to age and people live longer overall.
Although the risk of AD increases with age, it is not a usual partof aging or something that should be expected in older people, saysConstantine Lyketsos, M.D., director of the Memory and Alzheimers Treatment Center at Johns Hopkins.In fact, early onset Alzheimers can occur in people younger than 65,although it accounts for a small number of all cases. The rest areclassified as late onset.
Alzheimers and many other dementias occur as a result of damage toneuronsin the brain that affects their ability to communicate with each other.Over time, those neurons death and malfunction affects memory, learning,mood, behavior, and eventually physical functions, such as walking, andswallowing.
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How Did I Get Here
If you walk into a room and can’t remember what you were doing, that’s not cause for concern. It happens to all of us. But people with Alzheimer’s disease sometimes forget where they are. Or they find themselves somewhere and don’t remember how they got there. If that’s a problem you have, it’s a good idea to get help.
How Is Dementia Different From Normal Ageing
Dementia is a group of symptoms. Its caused by different diseases that damage the brain.
The symptoms of dementia get worse over time and include:
- confusion and needing help with daily tasks
- problems with language and understanding
- changes in behaviour.
When a person has dementia, this worsening in mental abilities is much more serious than the normal changes that people experience as they get older.
The changes may be small to start with, but become more noticeable. For a health professional to diagnose dementia, a person’s symptoms must be significantly affecting their daily life. This means having difficulties with completing daily tasks about the house, in the community or at work.
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In many cases, the mind of someone with dementia deteriorates over time until they can no longer complete tasks they used to be able to do. People with dementia may no longer be able to work, clean their home, pay bills, or drive. They may also become lost in familiar areas, forget to turn off the stove, or be unable to remember recent conversations with family members. While dementia can be age-related and commonly occurs in older adults, it is not an inevitable result of aging, and most seniors will never develop it.
Stage : Moderately Severe Dementia
When the patient begins to forget the names of their children, spouse, or primary caregivers, they are most likely entering stage 6 of dementia and will need full time care. In the sixth stage, patients are generally unaware of their surroundings, cannot recall recent events, and have skewed memories of their personal past. Caregivers and loved ones should watch for:
- Delusional behavior
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What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Dementia
Signs and symptoms of dementia result when once-healthy neurons, or nerve cells, in the brain stop working, lose connections with other brain cells, and die. While everyone loses some neurons as they age, people with dementia experience far greater loss.
The symptoms of dementia can vary and may include:
- Experiencing memory loss, poor judgment, and confusion
- Difficulty speaking, understanding and expressing thoughts, or reading and writing
- Wandering and getting lost in a familiar neighborhood
- Trouble handling money responsibly and paying bills
- Repeating questions
- Not caring about other peoples feelings
- Losing balance and problems with movement
People with intellectual and developmental disabilities can also develop dementia as they age, and recognizing their symptoms can be particularly difficult. Its important to consider a persons current abilities and to monitor for changes over time that could signal dementia.
Social Contact And Engagement
The value of social interaction and participation in group activities is widely recognised. Enjoying good social relationships with family, friends and neighbours and engaging in a large number of social activities are key elements of quality of life for older people . There is also a strong argument that having opportunities for social interaction is a basic human right for every citizen, irrespective of their health condition. In this section, we explore the impact of growing old on levels of social interaction and how this is exacerbated for people who have dementia.
Much of the literature suggests that older adults tend to experience a reduction in the size of their social network in later life, along with a decrease in the frequency of their social contacts . It is often suggested that this is partly due to significant life events, such as reduced mobility and the death of a partner and peers. A meta analysis by Pinquart and Sorenson concluded that greater social contact is associated with lower levels of loneliness, although other factors such as the emotional quality of contacts are also likely to be influential.
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Reversible Causes Of Memory Loss
Its important to remember that memory loss doesnt automatically mean that you have dementia. There are many other reasons why you may be experiencing cognitive problems, including stress, depression, and even vitamin deficiencies. Thats why its so important to go to a doctor to get an official diagnosis if youre experiencing problems.
Sometimes, even what looks like significant memory loss can be caused by treatable conditions and reversible external factors, such as:
Depression. Depression can mimic the signs of memory loss, making it hard for you to concentrate, stay organized, remember things, and get stuff done. Depression is a common problem in older adultsespecially if youre less social and active than you used to be or youve recently experienced a number of important losses or major life changes .
Vitamin B12 deficiency. Vitamin B12 protects neurons and is vital to healthy brain functioning. In fact, a lack of B12 can cause permanent damage to the brain. Older people have a slower nutritional absorption rate, which can make it difficult for you to get the B12 your mind and body need. If you smoke or drink, you may be at particular risk. If you address a vitamin B12 deficiency early, you can reverse the associated memory problems. Treatment is available in the form of a monthly injection.
Are you taking three or more drugs?
Dementia Or Old Age Know The Difference
3 Minute Read
As people age, some adults may notice it takes longer to learn new tasks or activities. Retaining information is more difficult. They may also lose items more easily, such as eyeglasses or car keys. Its common to become more forgetful, or to have trouble recalling certain dates or the details of past experiences. But in some cases, a failing memory is a sign of dementia.
How can you tell the difference between normal aging and dementia? The primary difference between the two is that mild forgetfulness does not significantly impact a persons life, while dementia can have permanent, debilitating effects.
As one of the best-rated geriatrics programs in the country, UPMC Geriatric Services strives to maintain a patients quality of life and independence. To make an appointment with one of our geriatricians, call 1-800-533-UPMC . For more information, visit our website.
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Tips For Stopping Smoking
- Talk to your GP or pharmacist about different ways to stop smoking.
- Try using a date or event as motivation for stopping. For example, you could make it a new years resolution.
- Consider using a less harmful nicotine product such as e-cigarettes , lozenges, patches, mouth and nasal sprays, or gum.
- Try using NHS Smokefree support services, which include a helpline, app and local support services.
Is It Dementia Or Old Age
A list of dementia symptoms may include factors like decreased focus, lack of motivation, or decreased memory. Suffering from these symptoms doesn’t always point to dementia. In fact, many dementia symptoms can be a completely normal part of aging, or can be signs of other afflictions like depression. In understanding dementia, one of the most important first steps is learning what distinguishes regular cognitive changes from dementia.
Most people experience mild cognitive changes and memory loss as they begin to move into their 50s. One of the clearest indicators of dementia is the speed of progression. Regular mental decline associated with aging is usually a slow and gradual loss of memory or attention span. Dementia, however, is often characterized by rapid, sudden, and severe changes in memory and cognitive ability.
For dementia symptoms that overlap with normal aging-related cognitive changes, there are distinguishing factors that can help understand whether or not these are regular changes. These can include:
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Cognitive Reserve And Level Of Education
Similar to studies of the younger old, both the 90+ Study and WISE have confirmed an association between lower level of education and increased risk of dementia in the oldest old . This finding highlights the importance of cognitive reserve, even in the most advanced ages. A lingering unanswered question remains of whether continued learning into advanced age is similarly protective.
Tips To Help With Normal Age
As a person ages, it becomes more likely that they may develop some form of memory loss. Age-associated memory impairment is the mildest form of memory loss that can occur as a result of due to the aging process. Its characterized by a self-perception of the memory loss with a decline in memory test scores when compared to younger adults. In the United States, approximately 40 percent of people aged 65 and older will experience age-associated memory impairment however, only around one percent of those individuals will develop dementia.
Mild cognitive impairment , the next phase of memory loss, is more severe than age-associated memory impairment. Its characterized by memory loss without functional impairments. Individuals with MCI can still live independently, but they show memory impairments that are comparable to persons with very mild Alzheimers disease. Approximately ten percent of persons age 65 and older have MCI. Almost 15 percent of these individuals will later develop Alzheimers disease.
With these statistics, its easy to see how important it is to do all you can to cope with normal age-associated memory impairments. Tips for coping include:
Its important to remember that having trouble remembering things, such as forgetting a persons name, doesnt necessarily mean you are getting dementia. Memory loss related to Alzheimers disease and dementia disrupts daily life and routines affecting memory, thinking and reasoning skills.
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Clinical Presentation Of Dementia In The Oldest Old
There is some debate in the literature regarding clinical subtypes of dementia in the oldest old, which may be, in part, due to methodological differences among studies. The most common subtypes of dementia identified in the 90+ Study, the Canadian Study of Health and Aging, and a large European meta-analysis were AD and vascular dementia . The most common subtypes in WISE, however, were AD and mixed dementia , the latter of which was not assessed in most prior studies. There is little known about behavioral changes that may accompany cognitive decline in the oldest old, aside from the development of depression as discussed below in the risk factor section.
There is some evidence that dementia, particularly AD, has a slower rate of progression in the oldest old compared with the younger old . Progression of functional decline and dependency, however, may be more rapid . These findings could have major implications for treatment trials because any therapeutic drug effect, as measured by cognitive testing or other disease-specific biomarkers, could be much smaller than in a younger old population.
What Can I Expect If I Have Dementia
Getting a diagnosis of dementia is certainly difficult to hear. Several types of dementia arent reversible. Others are a side effect of other serious diseases. Some dementia-like symptoms are due to conditions that can be treated and reversed.
Your healthcare team, which will probably include a neurologist and/or a geriatric-psychiatrist or a geriatrician, will order the needed tests to make the correct diagnosis. The medications available today focus on slowing the decline.
The goal is to maintain your or your loved ones quality of life. Some people with Alzheimers dementia can live up to two decades, but each person has their own unique course. Researchers continue learning about the mechanisms that cause dementia and testing different methods to slow, and someday, hopefully, cure this disease.
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How To Tell The Difference Between Dementia And Old Age
by John OKeeffe | Feb 29, 2016 | Senior Safety, Tips for Family Caregivers |
Weve all misplaced common things like keys, or our wallet, or blanked on a name of someone you just met. When were young, we dont tend to pay too much attentions to these kind of memory challenges.But as we age, sometimes we worry about what they mean. While its true that certain brain changes are inevitable when it comes to aging, major memory problems are not one of them. Thats why its important to know the difference between normal age-related forgetfulness and the symptoms that may indicate a developing cognitive problem.
Tips To Manage Normal Aging And Dementia Symptoms
If you are experiencing normal aging, then you can take the necessary steps in order to boost memory. Some effective ways to improve memory include:
Exercising: A new study has found that building muscles in seniors can help improve memory. Lead author Yorgi Mavros said, What we found in this follow-up study is that the improvement in cognition function was related to their muscle strength gains. The stronger people became, the greater the benefit for their brain.
Sleep: A good nights sleep may improve memory due to brain activity in hippocampus. The research findings revealed that patterns of brain activity that occur during the day are replayed rapidly during sleep. This replay occurs in the hippocampus, where our memories are filed. Sleep replay is important because it strengthens microscopic connections between nerve cells that are active a critical process for consolidating memories.
Rosemary or peppermint: The findings come from Northumbria University where researchers observed a boost of memory in participants after sniffing peppermint and rosemary. At the same time, lavender was found to impair memory, and chamomile slowed down the speed of memory and attention.
Other ways to improve memory include learning something new, completing puzzles, and basically challenging your brain in order to produce new brain cells for holding on to your precious memory.
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The Loss Of Nerve Cells In Normal Aging And Dementia
Adults experience a loss of nerve cells in normal aging and dementia, but at different levels of severity.
The loss of nerve cells in normal aging is minor and is combined with nerve cells passing messages more slowly. This causes adults to take longer to process new information or recall old memories. The impairment is typically subtle and does not cause difficulty with daily tasks or independent living.
The loss of nerve cells in dementia is more severe, with the loss of nerve cells impacting the ability to think clearly and solve problems. How soon and how severe the loss of nerve cells is in dementia, as well as the symptoms it causes, varies based on the type of dementia an individual has.
Tips For Cutting Down On Alcohol
- Set yourself a weekly alcohol limit and keep track of how much youre drinking.
- Have several alcohol-free days each week.
- Try low-alcohol or alcohol-free drinks, or smaller sizes of drinks.
- Try to alternate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks like cola, water or juice.
- Let your friends and family know that you’re cutting down, and how they can support you. This can make it easier to drink less, especially at social events.
- Take advantage of particular dates and events to motivate you. For example, you could make a new years resolution to drink less.
What can increase a person’s chances of getting dementia?What can increase a person’s chances of getting dementia? .
Discover how age, genetics, gender, ethnicity and many other factors can increase a person’s risk of developing dementia.
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