Geriatrics: depression, delirium, dementia Flashcards
most common type of dementia?
alzheimers
how do most people die from alzheimer’s?
aspiration pneumonia: unable to swallow
define dementia
An acquired syndrome of decline in memory and other cognitive functions sufficient to affect daily life in an ALERT patient
5 risk factors for alzheimers
Age Family history Head injury Fewer years of education Female sex
what part of the brain gets attacked (and shut down) first in Alzheimer’s dz
hippocampus
what is “mild cognitive impairment” ?
Memory problem without deficits in other domains
No functional impairment
alzheimer’s Dz: onset, progression
Onset: gradual
Progression: gradual, over 8–10 yr on average
alzheimer’s Dz: cognitive and motor symptoms
Cognitive symptoms: primarily memory
Motor symptoms: rare early, apraxia later
alzheimer’s Dz: lab tests and imaging
Lab tests: normal
Imaging: possible global atrophy, small hippocampal volumes
alz. DSM IV
Development of cognitive deficits manifested by:
Impaired memory and
Aphasia, apraxia, agnosia, disturbed executive function
apraxia: what is it?
- An inability to execute learned purposeful movements despite having the desire and physical capacity
- Acquired disorder of motor planning
- All of the muscles work but the region of the brain that plans and coordinates the movement of the muscles is impacted
Agnosia: what is it? where are the lesions?
The inability to recognize common objects, people, sounds, and places
Lesions on the parietal or temporal lobe
Semantic information and language
what is semantic memory?
long term memory or concepts not drawn from personal experience ( Letters, what is a cat…)
vascular dementia DSM IV
same as alzheimers but there are…
-Focal neurologic symptoms/signs or evidence of cerebrovascular disease
3 stages of progressive AD
mild, moderate and severe impairment
Vascular dementia: onset + progression
Onset: may be SUDDEN/ STEPWISE
Progression: stepwise with further ischemia
vascular dementia: cognitive and motor symptoms
Cognitive symptoms: depend on anatomy of ischemia
Motor symptoms: correlates with ischemia
vascular dementia: labs + imaging
Lab tests: normal
Imaging: cortical or subcortical changes on MRI