Alzheimer's Disease: Other Forms of Dementia

Dementia is the deficit of mental functions -- like memory, thinking, and reasoning -- that is serious enough to impede someone’s daily performance. Dementia isn’t a disease itself, but more exactly a collection of symptoms that are produced by a range of conditions or diseases. Symptoms may also include alterations in mood, personality, and behavior. In some instances, the dementia can be remedied and cured since the cause is treatable. Illustrations of this incorporate dementia produced by substance abuse (illicit drugs and alcohol), mixtures of prescription medicines, and vitamin or hormone imbalances. In a number of cases, even though the patient may seem to have dementia, a severe depression could be creating the symptoms. This is recognized as pseudo-dementia (false dementia) and is very treatable. In the majority of cases, though, a real dementia can’t be cured.

Dementia arises when the areas of the brain that are involved with memory, learning, decision-making, and language are influenced by one or more of a diversity of diseases or infections . The most widespread cause of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease, however there are as many as fifty other identified causes. The majority of these causes are extremely rare.

Since some causes of dementia can be partially treated or cured, it’s extremely important that your physician is meticulous when formulating the diagnosis, so as not to miss possible treatable conditions. The frequency of "treatable" causes of dementia is believed to be about 10%.

What Causes Dementia?

There are quite a few things that can cause dementia:

Diseases that cause loss or degeneration of nerve cells in the brain such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Huntington's.

Diseases that have an effect on blood vessels, like stroke, that can cause an ailment known as multi-infarct dementia.

Toxic reactions, like extreme drug or alcohol use.

Nutritional deficits, like folate and vitamin B12 deficiency.

Infections that have an effect on the brain and spinal cord, like Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and AIDS dementia complex.

Particular form of hydrocephalus, an buildup of fluid in the brain which can result from infections, developmental abnormalities, injury, or brain tumors.

Head injury -- either a solitary severe head injury or longer term lesser injuries, as in boxers.

Sickness other than in the brain -- liver, kidney, and lung diseases may all lead to dementia.

Alzheimer’s disease causes 50-60% of all dementias. However researchers have discovered that two nervous diseases, which were initially wrongly diagnosed as Alzheimer's, are emerging as chief causes of dementia: Pick's disease and Lewy body disease.

How Widespread Is Dementia?

Diseases that have an effect on blood vessels, like stroke, that can cause a disorder known as multi-infarct dementia.

Dementia caused by nervous system disease, particularly Alzheimer's disease, is rising in incidence more than most other kinds of dementia. A number of researchers believe that as many as half of all populace over 80 years old acquire Alzheimer's disease. In addition, the increased occurrence of AIDS dementia complex, that results from HIV infection, helps explain the increased dementia in modern history, though with the discovery of better and newer drugs to treat HIV, the incidence of AIDS-associated dementia is waning.

Who Gets Dementia?

Dementia is regarded as a late-life disease since it is inclined to develop typically in elderly people. About 5-8% of all persons over the age of 65 have some type of dementia, and this figure doubles every 5 years after that age. It’s predictable that as many as half of individuals in their 80s experience dementia.

What Dementias Are Treatable?

Dementia as a result of long-term substance abuse.

Tumors that can be removed.

Subdural hematoma, buildup of blood underneath the outer covering of the brain that result from a damaged blood vessel, typically as a result of a head injury.

Normal-pressure hydrocephalus.

Metabolic disorders, like a vitamin B12 deficiency.

Hypothyroidism, a condition that results from an under-active thyroid.

Hypoglycemia, a condition that results from low blood sugar.

What Are Certain Non-treatable Causes of Dementia?

Alzheimer's disease.

Multi-infarct dementia (Dementia due to numerous small strokes).

Dementias connected with Parkinson's disease and comparable disorders.

AIDS dementia complex.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rapidly progressing and fatal disease that consists of dementia and spasm and muscle twitching.