dementia

Examples of dementia in the following topics:

• Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood

  • Distinct from a normal decline in memory is dementia, a broad category of brain diseases that cause a gradual long-term decrease in the ability to think and remember to the extent that a person's daily functioning is affected.
  • While the term "dementia" is still often used in lay situations, in the DSM-5 it has been renamed "neurocognitive disorder," with various degrees of severity.
  • About 10% of people with dementia have what is known as mixed dementia, which is usually a combination of Alzheimer's disease and another type of dementia.
  • There is no cure for dementia, but for people who suffer from these disorders and for their caregivers, many measures can be taken to improve their lives.

• Neurocognitive Disorders

  • Neurocognitive disorders (NCDs), previously referred to in the DSM-IV-TR as dementia, are disorders that involve impairments in cognitive abilities such as memory, problem solving, and perception.
  • Alzheimer's disease accounts for 60% to 70% of cases of dementia.
  • What was previously referred to as dementia now constitutes most forms of major NCDs, while the diagnosis of mild NCD is reserved for cognitive symptoms that do not qualify for a major NCD.
  • Treatment of behavioral problems or psychosis due to dementia with antipsychotics is common; however, it is often not recommended due to its limited benefit and the increased risk of early death associated with it.
  • Later, thinking and behavioral problems may arise, with dementia commonly occurring in the advanced stages of the disease, whereas depression is the most common psychiatric symptom.

• Amnesia

  • "Neurocognitive disorder" is synonymous with "dementia" and "senility," but these terms are no longer used in the DSM-5.
  • The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer's disease, which makes up 50% to 70% of cases.

• Cognitive Development in Adulthood

  • Research has found that adults who engage in mentally and physically stimulating activities experience less cognitive decline in later adult years and have a reduced incidence of mild cognitive impairment and dementia (Hertzog, Kramer, Wilson, & Lindenberger, 2009; Larson et al., 2006; Podewils et al., 2005).

• Physical Development in Late Adulthood

  • Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and is the most common form of dementia in older adults.

• Strategies for Improving Memory Quality and Duration

  • One important use of environmental structuring is to guard against the type of memory loss associated with late life dementia: helping a patient remember what he has already done.

• Socioemotional Development in Late Adulthood

  • Approximately one in ten older adults report being abused, and this number rises in the cases of dementia or physical limitations.