Dementia Flashcards
What is dementia?
Acquired chronic progressive condition which is a cognitive impairment to ADL.
What are the clinical features of dementia?
Forgetfulness- difficulty retaining new information. This progresses to disorientation with time, place then self. During the forgetfulness stage, anxiety or depression may occur.
What are the prevalence of dementia?
Risk of dementia is increased in over 80 year olds compared to those over 65-79. Prevalence will increase as the elderly UK population increases.
What is the risk factor of dementia?
Age is the biggest. Obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and smoking contribute.
What are the types of dementia?
Alzheimer’s disease
Vascular dementia
Lewy-Body dementia
Frontotemporal dementia
What is Alzheimer’s disease?
Caused by protein deposits of amyloid plaque and tau which creates neurofibrillary tangles and leads to reduced synaptic transmission and release of acetylcholine and causes neuronal death. There is reduced acetylcholine levels and glutamate
What are the symptoms of mild Alzheimer’s disease?
Repeating questions, getting lost.
What are the symptoms of moderate Alzheimer’s disease?
Impulsive behaviour and difficulty remembering family and friends’ faces.
What are the symptoms of severe Alzhiemer’s disease?
Expressive aphaisa: articulation difficulty
Receptive aphasia: difficulty with speech being understood by others
Expressive aphasia
Articulation difficulty
Receptive aphasia
Difficulty with speech being understood by others. eg it’s like you’re speaking gibberish
How does the brain change with age?
Reduces in weight; increases in ventricular size.
How does Alzheimer’s affect the brain?
Medial temporal lobe atrophy is the first indication
How is Alzheimer’s disease treated?
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors or memantine
What is vascular dementia?
Acute onset of dementia caused by issues with blood flow to the brain related to blood clots or brain injury.
What is stepwise deterioration?
Symptoms stay the same and suddenly get worse
What are the risk factors for vascular dementia?
High cholesterol, diabetes, coronary heart disease, peripheral heart disease
What is the cause of vascular dementia unrelated to chronic problems?
Traumatic injury to the brain
What is the symptoms of vascular dementia?
Acute onset of symptoms where there is:
-> Hallucinations and delusions
-> Poor judgement
-> difficulty remembering events
-> issues following instructions,
-> misplacing items
What is the treatment for vascular dementia?
No medication, only supportive.
What is Lewy Body dementia?
Caused by deposits of alpha-synuclein protein which causes cognitive decline.
What are the symptoms of Lewy-Body dementia?
-> Hallucination
-> Sleep disorders like nightmares, insomnia and hypersomnia
->Parkinsonism which is movement disorders like muscle rigidity, loss of facial expression, loss of co-ordinatinon.
How is Lewy-Body dementia differentiated from Parkinson’s?
In Lewy-Body dementia, there is issues with cognitive and movement at the same time. In Parkinson’s movement issues occur before cognitive decline.
How is Lewy-Body dementia treated?
Memantine- Antidementia medication. However, those with Lewy Body dementia have an extreme sensitivity to medication.
What is frontotemporal dementia?
Tau protein deposits in the frontal and temporal lobe. Causes personality changes and language difficulties.
What are the symptoms of frontotemporal dementia which affects the frontal lobe?
Impulsive behaviour and disinhibtion with excessive food, drink and sex and expressive aphasia
What are the symptoms of frontotemporal dementia that affects the temporal lobe?
Receptive aphasia
What are the symptoms of frontotemporal lobe dementia unspecific to the lobes?
Movement problems with walking and balance
What is the life expectancy of dementia?
5-10 years
What is presenile?
Occurs before 65 years
