Alzheimer's Disease
Symptoms
In the early stages in particular, dementia is often difficult to diagnose, since many symptoms are not recognized as such or are trivialized by the patient. 20% of actual dementia cases are reported to be incorrectly diagnosed as a different disease. The problem must therefore be discussed with relatives too, to carefully identify the aspects of the patient's daily life in which it is noticeable.
- Forgetfulness that affects work and daily life:
Most people forget names and appointments now and then. An increase in these incidents and the onset of inexplicable states of confusion, however, can be a sign of impaired memory.
- Difficulties with usual activities:
People who have too much to do are sometimes absent-minded and forget the pan on the stove, for example. People with dementia may forget not only the pan on the stove, but also that they have been cooking.
- Speech problems:
Most people sometimes have difficulties finding the right words. People with dementia often no longer remember simple words, instead they use inappropriate substitutes. For this reason, they become difficult to understand.
- Spatial and temporal orientation problems:
It happens to many people now and then - forgetting what day of the week it is or getting lost in a strange place. Sometimes people with dementia may be standing in their own street and not know where they are, how they got there or how to get home.
- Reduced ability to make judgments:
We don't always choose the right clothes to suit the weather. People with dementia sometimes wear clothes that are completely inappropriate. They may, for example, wear a bathrobe to go shopping or several shirts on top of one another on a hot summer's day.
- Problems with abstract thought:
For many people it is a challenge to keep their accounts. People with dementia, however, can often neither put numbers in order nor carry out simple calculations.
- Leaving things lying around:
Nearly everyone sometimes leaves their keys or wallet lying around. People with dementia often leave things in completely inappropriate places, for example jewelry in the refrigerator or a watch in the sugar bowl. Afterwards they have no idea where they have put the missing object.
- Loss of self-motivation:
People do not constantly work with the same motivation. People with dementia, however, lose their drive at work and their interest in hobbies, sometimes completely, with no pleasure in finding new things to do.
- Personality changes:
In old age, many people show slight personality changes. In people with dementia, though, a very marked personality change can take place suddenly or over a longer period. Someone who is normally friendly may become, for example, unexpectedly angry, jealous or anxious.
- Mood and behaviour changes:
Changes in mood happen to everybody. The moods of people with dementia can change very abruptly, however, often with no recognizable reason
To stream a web seminar by Dr. Jeffrey Cummings (founder and director of the UCLA Alzheimer's Disease Center in Los Angeles, California), which discusses "Behavioural Disturbances in Alzheimer's Disease: Relevance, Assessment, and Treatment" please click here. (This may take a few minutes to load and Windows Media Player is required)