Mild manifestations of senile dementia

Written by Tang Bo
Neurology
Updated on September 03, 2024
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Mild dementia, especially in its early stages, often goes unnoticed by family members. The initial symptoms generally include being particularly forgetful. This particularly affects short-term memory; for example, a person might repeat what was just said or be repeatedly clumsy in daily tasks, sometimes losing keys or forgetting to turn off the stove while cooking. This might seem like a lack of concentration, but in reality, it is due to forgetfulness. Emotionally, individuals who were once lively might become indifferent or detached, sometimes showing signs of excitement or agitation. Behaviorally, there can be changes, such as previously generous individuals becoming stingy. Interests and hobbies that were once loved may no longer hold appeal, and individuals may become lethargic and less concerned with cleanliness and personal appearance.

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Neurology
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Late-stage symptoms of dementia

In the later stages of dementia, symptoms become very severe. Patients experience significant impairment in memory function, forgetting not only recent events but also events from the past. Additionally, patients show obvious impairments in visuospatial abilities, having trouble locating the bathroom in their own home, and often getting lost when they go out. There is also a noticeable change in behavior, with patients exhibiting aggression, cursing, and inappropriate actions like urinating or defecating in random places. Some patients may experience recurrent visual and auditory hallucinations. As the disease progresses, elderly patients may eventually become bedridden for life, not interacting with anyone, remaining silent, and refusing to eat. They ultimately may die from complications such as lung infections, urinary tract infections, malnutrition, and bedsores. Therefore, the symptoms of dementia in its later stages are quite severe, with cognitive impairments, abnormal mental and behavioral symptoms, and various infections all posing serious threats to the health of the elderly.

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Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
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Care measures for dementia in the elderly

Dementia in the elderly is the most common neurodegenerative disease in neurology, mainly referring to the irreversible death of neuronal cells caused by various reasons, which poses a significant clinical hazard and lacks effective treatment methods. Therefore, nursing measures become very important. The main nursing measures include, First, ensuring the patient's nutrition. In the later stages, elderly patients may have no regular diet and cannot take care of themselves. Therefore, ensuring sufficient energy intake and enough protein intake is very important. Malnutrition can easily lead to various complications, leading to the patient's death. Second, it's important to equip elderly people with commonly used contact numbers and addresses in their pockets to prevent them from getting lost and creating dangerous situations. Third, when elderly people are at home, it is crucial to keep the kitchen door closed to prevent them from turning on the gas and forgetting to turn it off. Fourth, patients with dementia are prone to lung infections after becoming bedridden. If bedridden, it is important to frequently turn them over and pat their back to prevent the onset of lung infections.

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Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
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Late-stage symptoms of senile dementia

Elderly dementia generally refers to Alzheimer's disease. This disease begins slowly and progressively worsens, with symptoms becoming increasingly severe. In the later stages of dementia, symptoms are numerous, mainly reflected in the following aspects: First, patients may exhibit significant personality changes. For example, a person who was originally gentle may become irritable and prone to aggressive behaviors such as hitting or yelling at others, and may even experience incontinence. Second, a patient's overall cognitive functions completely collapse, with a comprehensive decline in memory, as well as significant impairments in computational abilities, judgment, and comprehension. There are also problems with time orientation, with patients unable to distinguish between day and night. Additionally, patients may experience severe malnutrition, develop bedsores, and suffer from serious complications such as pulmonary infections and urinary tract infections.

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Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
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How to alleviate senile dementia?

Dementia brings a heavy burden to both the patient and their family, severely affecting the quality of life. Fundamentally, there is no particularly effective treatment for this disease. To achieve relief, the following measures are recommended: Firstly, it is generally necessary for the patient to take medication for treatment. Commonly used medications include cholinesterase inhibitors, which can increase the content of acetylcholine in the brain and can to some extent delay the progression of the disease. In addition, one can also take some NMDA receptor antagonists to improve dementia. Secondly, encourage the elderly to learn more and read more, which can increase knowledge reserves and delay progression. Thirdly, it is essential to encourage the elderly to go out and interact with others, and of course, precautions should be taken to prevent them from getting lost. In addition, they should engage in appropriate aerobic exercise. (Specific medication use should be conducted under the guidance of a doctor)

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Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
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At what age does senile dementia usually occur?

It is generally believed that elderly people over the age of 65 are at a significantly increased risk of dementia, and the prevalence is even higher among those over 80. However, there are exceptions, as some individuals may experience cognitive decline around the age of 50, which requires extra attention. The most common cause of dementia is Alzheimer's disease, a typical neurodegenerative disorder where various factors lead to the degeneration and death of neurons. Initially, patients mainly exhibit a decline in short-term memory functions, often mistaken for simple forgetfulness, resulting in a failure to seek diagnosis and treatment.