When the first symptoms of dementia appear, it is perceived by loved ones as a death sentence. No one is immune from this disaster. The disease is called both "dementia", which sounds somehow ugly, and "marasmus", which is generally deadly. Symptoms of dementia are a problem in which you need to sound the alarm, because only in Russia the number of patients reaches almost 2 million, and there are several million more who care for them. Meanwhile, treatment, started in a timely manner, allows you to postpone the obvious manifestations of the disease for several years.
Dementia symptoms
Dementia is a disease that is accompanied by severe disorders in the human intellect and behavior, leading to the loss of basic life skills. The disease usually develops in older people. This is about 5% of people over the age of 65. Patients lose the ability to acquire new skills and knowledge, while losing and previously learned. Experts classify mild, moderate and severe dementia according to severity. Symptoms of mild dementia are manifested by the degradation of the patient's professional skills, a decrease in his social activity, weakeninginterest in the environment. At the same time, he fully retains self-service skills, normally orients himself within his own apartment. Symptoms of moderate dementia are more pronounced: loss of skills in using modern devices (telephone, TV, kitchen utensils). The patient needs the help of relatives, but retains the skills of self-care and self-care. Severe dementia is called senile dementia, it is characterized by a person's dependence on the help of loved ones even in elementary actions (dressing, eating, hygiene). Senile dementia, the symptoms of which are described above, is an acquired disease, in contrast to congenital dementia, such as mental retardation. Senile dementia is a consequence of the organic breakdown of brain cells in old age.
Alzheimer's Dementia: Symptoms
Sufficient reason to see a doctor:
- Memory. A person remembers information about what is happening at the current moment worse.
- Orientation. A person begins to orientate in space and time worse.
- Thinking. Difficulties appear when trying to solve simple tasks in everyday practice, rapid mental fatigue.
- Communication. Independence is lost, and social functions are burdensome.
- Behaviour. Interest in former hobbies is lost, everyday difficulties gradually appear, which is expressed in negligence and slovenliness. The man is still taking care of himselfon his own, but needs reminders and hints.
Causes of dementia:
- Diseases of the nervous system that cause brain cell death (Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's chorea).
- Cerebral vascular disease (heart attack, stroke, ischemia).
- Alcoholism, hypoxemia, hypoglycemia, hypothyroidism and other metabolic disorders.
- Neuroinfections.
- Tranio-cerebral injuries.
- Tumours.
Dementia treatment
Despite the fact that there is an opinion about the futility of the treatment of this disease, you should know that not every type of dementia is irreversible. Some symptoms of dementia go away after the causes that caused them are removed. Modern medicine has a number of anti-dementia drugs that slow down the development of the severe consequences of this disease.
