Introduction
The word dementia is a collective term for different subtypes of diseases that affect different cognitive processes of sick patients. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia and usually occurs after the age of 60. For this reason, it is not possible to speak directly of dementia vs. Alzheimer’s disease, as Alzheimer’s dementia is a subtype of the disease dementia.
In addition to Alzheimer’s disease, there are many other forms of dementia, which can also manifest themselves in younger patients. Dementia as a whole is becoming increasingly common in Germany due to the ageing society. It is estimated that almost one in three Germans over the age of 80 is affected.
In the following, all the facts about dementia vs. Alzheimer’s disease are discussed. There are many different types of dementia. The headline Dementia vs. Alzheimer also includes one type of dementia – namely Alzheimer’s dementia.
It is important to find out which of the forms is present in a particular patient. Sometimes there are metabolic disorders or other organic causes which must first be treated before the dementia itself can be treated. With the treatment of the underlying cause, the dementia often improves on its own.
Nowadays, imaging techniques make it relatively easy to differentiate between the different types of dementia. The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s dementia, which accounts for about 70%. In second place comes Lewy Body Dementia with about 20%.
Vascular and frontotemporal dementia are the third and fourth most common subtypes. There are also other types of dementia, but they are significantly less common. The distinction between dementia vs. Alzheimer’s disease is that dementia is the umbrella term for various subforms of this disease. Alzheimer’s dementia is the most common form of dementia. In addition to Alzheimer’s dementia, there are other types of dementia, such as Lewy-Body dementia, frontotemporal dementia and vascular dementia.
Causes
The causes for the development of dementia are very different, as there are many different forms of dementia. For example, vascular dementia is caused by many small brain infarctions. Genetic factors also influence the risk of developing dementia.
Other forms of dementia are caused by defective proteins called prions. In many cases, the exact cause of dementia is not known. It is likely that the disease is caused by the influence and interaction of many different factors.
It is important to note that hormonal causes can also cause dementia-like symptoms, for example a malfunction of the thyroid gland. Elderly people who drink too little also often develop such symptoms, which subside after sufficient fluid intake. The most important and prominent symptom of dementia is the impairment of mental abilities, which mainly affects short-term memory.
People with dementia often repeat things they have just said or forget where they have left something. Particularly in the early stages of the disease, these signs can be easily masked by the affected person, so that the environment does not necessarily notice. As the disease progresses, however, the impairments become more severe, so that the patient can no longer find his way home, suffers from difficulties in finding words and arithmetic or at some point even no longer recognises his relatives.
In some forms of dementia, however, cognitive impairments are not the only symptoms. Dementia can also manifest itself on a physical level – for example, through the typical small-step and wide-legged gait pattern, incontinence and the risk of falling. Dementia patients with advanced disease often appear uninvolved (apathetic), neglect personal hygiene and household tasks, forget to eat and drink or wander around.
Some patients also suffer from anxiety, hallucinations and sleep disorders. Optical hallucinations are particularly typical for Lewy Body Dementia. Some patients also become aggressive towards nursing staff and/or relatives.
Dementia usually manifests itself through increasing forgetfulness. The difficulty here is that even healthy people can forget something now and then without being ill. However, if forgetfulness increases and things happen that never happened before, it could be an early symptom of dementia.
Typical symptoms could be for example forgetting something that has just been read in a newspaper or book and pronounced problems finding words. The loss of interests, frequent tiredness and a depressed mood can also be harbingers of dementia. However, the transition to depression is fluid, so a clear differentiation must be made.
In the further course of the disease, orientation becomes difficult. It is harder to find your way around the supermarket or residential area and you become increasingly lost. The social environment may notice a change in personality and abrupt mood swings may also occur. Since even the healthy population can show many of these symptoms at some point, it is important to clearly distinguish between what is pathological and what is not yet worrying.
