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Healthinmind/Mental Health Disorders/Cognitive Disorders Dementia, like delirium, involves cognitive deficits, but the deficits are different. One universal characteristic of dementia is short-term memory loss. It may be accompanied by inability to find words (aphasia), to recognize objects (agnosia), or to carry out a sequence of motor activities (apraxia), despite the ability to make the individual movements. The onset of dementia tends to be more gradual than the onset of delirium, and may go unnoticed for long periods. The person with dementia may behave quite inappropriately, for example by telling dirty jokes to strangers or exposing genitalia. Violent behavior, although less common than in cases of delirium, sometimes occurs. In early cases of dementia, when the individual is aware of his or her deteriorating condition but still able to execute plans, suicide is a possibility. Just as in delirium and many other disorders, the subtypes of dementia are classified according to their causes. An increasingly common type of dementia is dementia of the Alzheimer's type; estimates place the percentage of people over 65 in the United States with Alzheimer's at 2 to 4 percent. Despite the fact that many causes of dementia are age-related, one should not assume that dementia is a normal consequence of aging. Although little can be done to prevent or ameliorate dementia in many cases, a medical examination is necessary in order to evaluate causes and possible treatments. One study of cases of dementia at three centers showed that 26% of the cases were treatable. The most common treatable cases are those with chronic drug toxicity, major depression, normal pressure hydrocephalus, or operable brain masses. Future
research may uncover, one type at a time, ways to prevent or
treat the dementias; some drugs already show promise in arresting
the progress of Alzheimer's disease. Select the desired category
below for information on specific types of dementia. Last updated 12/19/03 |
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