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Decades ago, few doctors had heard of Alzheimer’s disease, even though it was described as a distinct disease more than 100 years ago.
Frailty and the aging process of the brain were thought to be inevitable for anyone who lived long enough. With increasing knowledge about the human brain, science has acquired the ability to accurately determine and distinguish many causes of dementia (acquired dementia).
Alzheimer’s disease – or senile dementia of the Alzheimer’s type – is the most common type of dementia, however, along with this disease, other disorders of the brain are often the cause of persistent decline in cognitive activity.
Different types of dementia
very often have similar symptoms. Even experienced doctors sometimes cannot say with certainty what type of dementia a patient suffers from.
Some patients may suffer from different types of dementia at the same time, a phenomenon doctors call “mixed dementia.”
In this article we will tell you about the 4 most common forms of dementia.
Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s disease is the most famous and common form of dementia.
Typical symptoms:
- Impaired memory for recent events, memory “gaps”, impaired orientation in time.
- Replacing true memories with fictitious confabulations, which can be very bizarre;
- Decreased intelligence, poor speech, handwriting disorders;
- Depression, accompanied by feelings of confusion, fear, anxiety, sleep disturbances;
- Increased suspicion with features of paranoid delusion;
- Mental disorders: grumpiness, rudeness, irritability;
- Difficulty finding words, speech disorders, communication disorders;
- In the later stages – confusion, loss of basic skills, complete apathy.
Reason: The cause and mechanism of Alzheimer’s disease remain not fully understood, so there are controversial hypotheses, but it is known that the hallmark of the disease is the formation of amyloid plaques in brain tissue and the gradual death of nerve cells. It is these changes in the human brain that are behind the development of Alzheimer’s disease, at least this is what many neurologists believe.
Treatment: There are various types of therapy, both drug and non-drug, that can temporarily improve brain function and cheer up a patient with Alzheimer’s disease, but no treatment known to us today has been proven to be effective.
At this time, Alzheimer’s disease is considered incurable; there is no way to stop or postpone the progressive disease.
The new drug, developed by Israeli scientists, is currently undergoing preclinical testing. The US government has made Alzheimer’s research a priority and hopes to develop an optimal treatment by 2025. In the meantime, the only effective way to delay the development of Alzheimer’s disease is regular mental exercise.
Vascular or multi-infarct dementia
Vascular dementia, also known as multi-infarct dementia and post-stroke dementia, is the second most common type of dementia.
The main symptoms are:
- Memory loss
- Blackout
- Decreased ability to plan
- Loss of motivation
Reason: Cerebral hemorrhage of varying severity causes brain damage.
Treatment: Vascular dementia has no cure, but patients need treatment to prevent further brain damage. As with Alzheimer’s disease, a variety of medications and other treatments can be used to manage symptoms and slow the progression of the disease.
Dementia with Lewy bodies
Supposedly the third most common disease, the disease is also called “cortical Lewy body disease” and “diffuse Lewy body disease.” The main symptoms are:
- Sleep problems
- Memory loss
- hallucinations
- Problems concentrating
Reason: The reason is the appearance of Lewy bodies in nerve cells, which are atypical (pathological) proteins that disrupt brain function.
Treatment: As with other diseases of this type, there is no way to reverse the progression of dementia with Lewy bodies, but it is possible to improve the patient’s quality of life, as with the treatment of other types of dementia.
Frontotemporal dementia
Frontotemporal dementia is much less common than other types of dementia, but is thought to be the fourth most common.
Unlike the types of dementia discussed above, frontotemporal dementia is characterized more by behavioral and emotional changes than by cognitive ones. In fact, people with frontotemporal dementia have intact memory.
The main symptoms are:
- Decreased behavioral control (often leading to inappropriate behavior)
- Apathy and loss of motivation
- Decreased empathy (feelings of compassion)
- Repetitive or compulsive behavior patterns
- Anxiety and depression
Reason: Frontotemporal dementia occurs due to atrophy or damage to the frontal and temporal regions of the brain.
Treatment and therapy: Frontotemporal dementia has no cure, but it is possible to treat symptoms of the disease that are problematic or inconvenient for the patient and their environment.
Other causes of dementia
Any condition or disease that causes damage to nerve cells can cause dementia.
For example, patients with Parkinson’s disease often suffer from dementia in the later stages of the disease. Diseases such as Huntington’s disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and alcoholism can also lead to permanent cognitive impairment.
If you notice signs in yourself or your loved ones that may be early symptoms of dementia, immediately contact a psychiatrist or neurologist, who will use special tests to confirm or refute the diagnosis.