DEMENTIABy: Angela Pabon

What is Dementia?

• Dementia does not always mean that one has Alzheimer's disease, there are over 80 forms of dementia

• The definition of dementia is the gradual reduction of cognitive skills, memory, language usage and problem solving ability

• Caused by physical changes in the brain

Types of Dementia• Most types of dementia are nonreversible (degenerative)*meaning changes in the brain cannot be stopped

• However, some causes of dementia may be stopped or reversed if they are found soon enough, including:• Brain injury• Brain tumors• Chronic alcohol abuse• Changes in blood sugar, sodium, and calcium levels• Low vitamin B12 levels• Normal pressure hydrocephalus

..Types of Dementia• Alzheimer’s Disease• Vascular Dementia• Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB)• Mixed Dementia• Parkinson’s Disease• Frontotemporal Dementia• Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease• Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus• Huntington’s Disease• Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome

Alzheimer’s Disease

• Most common type of dementia (60%-80%of cases)

• Symptoms: • Difficulty remembering names and recent events,

apathy and depression (early symptoms)• Impaired judgment, disorientation, confusion, behavior

changes and difficulty speaking, swallowing and walking (later symptoms)

• Brain changes:• Hallmark abnormalities are deposits of the protein

fragment beta-amyloid (plaques)

• Twisted strands of the protein

• Evidence of nerve cell damage and death in the brain

.. Alzheimer’s Disease

Vascular Dementia• Previously known as post-stroke dementia*second most common cause of dementia

• Symptoms: • Impaired judgment or ability to plan steps needed to

complete a task *more likely to be the initial symptom*• brain injuries such as microscopic bleeding and blood

vessel blockage• Location of the brain injury determines how the

individual's thinking and physical functioning are affected

• Brain changes:• blood vessel problems (Inadequate blood flow)

Lewy Bodies (DLB)

• Symptoms:• memory loss and thinking problems common in

Alzheimer's• sleep disturbances, well-formed visual hallucinations,

and muscle rigidity or other parkinsonian movement features

• Brain changes:• Lewy bodies: abnormal aggregations (clumps) of the

protein alpha-synuclein *developed in the cortex

Mixed Dementia

• In mixed dementia abnormalities linked to more than one type of dementia occur simultaneously in the brain

• Brain changes:• Characterized by the hallmark abnormalities of more

than one type of dementia (most commonly, Alzheimer's and vascular dementia)

Parkinson’s Disease

• Often results in a progressive dementia

• Symptoms: • Problems with movement

• When dementia develops symptoms are often similar to dementia with Lewy bodies

..Parkinson’s Disease

• Brain changes:• Alpha-synuclein clumps are likely to

begin in an area deep in the brain called the substantia nigra• Substantia nigra: located in the mid-brain,

controls voluntary movement, regulates mood, produces dopamine

• clumps cause degeneration of the nerve cells that produce dopamine• Dopamine: neurotransmitter that helps

regulate movement and emotional responses

Frontotemporal Dementia

• Includes dementias such as behavioral variant FTD (bvFTD), primary progressive aphasia, Pick's disease and progressive supranuclear palsy

• Symptoms: • changes in personality and behavior and difficulty with

language* Nerve cells in the front and side regions of the brain are especially affected

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease• Most common human form of a group of rare, fatal brain disorders affecting people

• Symptoms: • Rapidly fatal disorder that impairs memory and

coordination and causes behavior changes

• Brain changes:• Results from misfolded prion protein in the brain that

causes a "domino effect“ and malfunctions

Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus

• Symptoms: • difficulty walking, memory loss and inability to control

urination

• Brain changes:• Caused by the buildup of fluid in the brain

*Can sometimes be corrected with surgical installation of a shunt in the brain to drain excess fluid*

Huntington’s Disease• A progressive brain disorder caused by a single defective gene on chromosome 4

• Symptoms:• abnormal involuntary movements• severe decline in thinking and reasoning skills• irritability, depression and other mood changes

• Brain changes:• The gene defect causes abnormalities in a brain protein

that, over time, lead to worsening symptoms

Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome• Chronic memory disorder caused by severe deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B-1)

*most commonly caused by alcohol misuse• Symptoms:

• Memory problems may be strikingly severe while other thinking and social skills seem relatively unaffected

• Brain changes:• Effects Thiamine

*Thiamine: helps brain cells produce energy from sugar. (When thiamine levels fall too low, brain cells cannot generate enough energy to function properly)

Dementia vs. Normal Aging

• Dementia is not normal aging and is characterized by multiple cognitive deficits with memory impairments • Executive functioning• Language• Working (immediate) memory• Spatial memory• Verbal memory

Dementia vs. Normal Aging

Generally, there must be an impairment in social functioning and independent living for a diagnosis of dementia to be given.

*Independent living :describes the ability to shop alone, manage finances, perform basic household duties and monitor appropriate social behaviors.

Treatment

• Treatment depends on the condition causing the dementia.

• A person's eyes and ears should be checked regularly. Hearing aids, glasses, or cataract surgery may be needed.

Prevention• Most causes of dementia are not preventable.

• Quitting smoking and controlling high blood pressure and diabetes can help you reduce your risk of vascular dementia. (This is dementia caused by a series of small strokes)

• Eating a low-fat diet and exercising regularly may also reduce the risk of vascular dementia.

Works CitedBrain 101: Topics in Neuroscience. (n.d.). Normal Aging vs Dementia. Retrieved January 7,

2014, from http://memory.ucsf.edu/brain/aging/dementia

Comprehensive Center on Brain Aging. (n.d.). What is Dementia?. Retrieved January 7, 2014,

from http://aging.med.nyu.edu/patient-care/what-dementia

Dementia. (n.d.). University of Maryland Medical Center. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from

http://umm.edu/Health/Medical/Ency/Articles/Dementia

Types of Dementia. (n.d.). Dementia Types. Retrieved January 7, 2014, from

http://www.alz.org/dementia/types-of-dementia.asp

Types of Dementia. (n.d.). WebMD. Retrieved January 13, 2014, from

http://www.webmd.com/brain/types-dementia