What is dementia?

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Tuesday’s news from the Carter Center that former First Lady Rosalynn Carter is experiencing dementia is bringing new light into the diagnosis.

According to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dementia is not a specific disease but a general term for the impaired ability to remember, think, or make decisions that interferes with doing everyday activities.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia. Among those adults at least 65 years old, there were about five million adults with dementia in 2014, with projections to be as high as 14 million by 2060.

People with dementia have problems with:

• Memory
• Attention
• Communication
• Reasoning, judgment, and problem solving
• Visual perception beyond typical age-related changes in vision

Signs that may point to dementia:

• Getting lost in a familiar neighborhood
• Using unusual words to refer to familiar objects
• Forgetting the name of a close family member or friend
• Forgetting old memories
• Not being able to complete tasks independently

Risk factors

• Age. The strongest known risk factor for dementia is increasing age, with most cases affecting those of 65 years and older
• Family history. Those who have parents or siblings with dementia are more likely to develop dementia themselves.
• Race/ethnicity. Older African Americans are twice more likely to have dementia than Whites, while Hispanics are 1.5 times more likely to have dementia than Whites.
• Poor heart health. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking increase the risk of dementia.
• Traumatic brain injury. Head injuries can increase the risk of dementia, especially if they are severe or occur repeatedly.

How is dementia diagnosed?

A healthcare provider can perform tests on attention, memory, problem solving and other cognitive abilities to see if there is cause for concern. A physical exam, blood tests, and brain scans like a CT or MRI can help determine an underlying cause.

Common types

• Alzheimer’s disease. This is the most common cause of dementia, accounting for 60 to 80 percent of cases. It is caused by specific changes in the brain. The trademark symptom is trouble remembering recent events, such as a conversation that occurred minutes or hours ago, while difficulty remembering more distant memories occurs later in the disease. Other concerns like difficulty with walking or talking or personality changes also come later. Family history is the most important risk factor. Having a first-degree relative with Alzheimer’s disease increases the risk of developing it by 10 to 30 percent.
• Vascular dementia. About 10 percent of dementia cases are linked to strokes or other issues with blood flow to the brain. Diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are also risk factors. Symptoms vary depending on the area and size of the brain impacted.
• Lewy body dementia. In addition to more typical symptoms like memory loss, people with this form of dementia may have movement or balance problems like stiffness or trembling. Many people also experience changes in alertness including daytime sleepiness, confusion or staring spells. They may also have trouble sleeping at night or may experience visual hallucinations.
• Fronto-temporal dementia. This type of dementia most often leads to changes in personality and behavior because of the part of the brain it affects. People with this condition may embarrass themselves or behave inappropriately. There may also be problems with language skills like speaking or understanding.
• Mixed dementia. Sometimes more than one type of dementia is present in the brain at the same time, especially in people aged 80 and older.
• Reversible causes. People who have dementia may have a reversible underlying cause such as side effect of medication, increased pressure in the brain, vitamin deficiency, and thyroid hormone imbalance.

Treatment

Neurodegenerative dementias, like Alzheimer’s disease, have no cure, though there are medications that can help protect the brain or manage symptoms such as anxiety or behavior changes.

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