Dementia

Dementia - Dementia is a general term for loss

of memory and other mental abilities severe

enough to interfere with daily life. It is caused by physical changes in the

brain.

10 signs to early detection1. Memory loss that affects daily life

2. Challenges in planning or solving problems

3. Difficulty completing projects at home, at work, or at leisure

4. Confusion with time or place

5. Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships

6. New problems with words in speaking and writing

7. Misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps

8. Decreased or poor judgment

9. Withdrawal from work or social activities

10.Changes in mood and personalities

Types of Dementia:Alzheimer’s disease

Most common form of dementia

Vascular dementiaSecond most common cause of dementia

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB)more likely than people with Alzheimer's to have initial or early symptoms such as sleep disturbances, well-

formed visual hallucinations, and muscle rigidity

Mixed dementiaabnormalities linked to more than one type of dementia occur simultaneously in the brain

Parkinson’s diseaseProblem’s with movement

Frontotemporal dementiaChanges in personality and behavior and difficulty with language

Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseaseCJD is the most common human form of a group of rare, fatal brain disorders affecting people and certain

other mammals

Normal pressure hydrocephalusdifficulty walking, memory loss and inability to control urination

Huntington’s diseaseprogressive brain disorder caused by a single defective gene on chromosome 4

Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndromechronic memory disorder caused by severe deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B-1). The most common cause is

alcohol misuse.

Alzheimer’s diseaseMost common type of dementia; accounts for an estimated 60 to 80 percent of cases.

Symptoms: Difficulty remembering names and recent events is often an early clinical symptom; apathy and depression are also often early symptoms. Later symptoms include impaired judgment, disorientation, confusion, behavior changes and difficulty speaking, swallowing and walking.

Brain changes: Hallmark abnormalities are deposits of the protein fragment beta-amyloid (plaques) and twisted strands of the protein tau (tangles) as well as evidence of nerve cell damage and death in the brain.

FACTS

Early onset Alzheimer’s can affect those in their 40s and 50s.

Alzheimer's disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

More than 5 million Americans are living with the disease.

1 in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer's or another dementia.

In 2012, 15.4 million caregivers provided more than 17.5 billion hours of unpaid care valued at $216 billion.

Nearly 15% of caregivers for people with Alzheimer's or another dementia are long-distance caregivers.

In 2013, Alzheimer's will cost the nation $203 billion. This number is expected to rise to $1.2 trillion by 2050.

In WI alone there has been a 30% increase in Alzheimer’s ages 65 and up since 2000

In 2010 nearly 2,000 deaths in WI were due to Alzheimer’s

Mortality –

Alzheimer's disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States overall and the 5th leading cause of death for those aged 65 and older. It is the only cause of death among the top 10 in America without a way to prevent it, cure it or even slow its progression. Deaths from Alzheimer's increased 68 percent between 2000 and 2010, while deaths from other major diseases, including the number one cause of death (heart disease), decreased. If you do not die from Alzheimer's disease, you die with it.