Dementia Research Paper

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Many ordinary people have the wrong idea about a condition seen in elderly individuals. To many people, dementia is thought to be a disease that affects the memory of elderly people. They think it is irreversible and inevitable, that it is something the majority of people will face as they get older. Many people also confuse delirium with dementia. Delirium can be caused by illness, malnutrition, or medication, as can dementia, however, delirium describes a person who is less alert, drowsy, and restless, while dementia talks about someone who is fully awake, but still having problems with cognitive functioning. However, dementia is not a disease. The word dementia comes from two Latin words meaning away and mind. (Mace and Rabins, 6) Dementia …show more content…
Some signs of dementia can also be symptoms of other diseases, making misdiagnosis common. The most common sign of dementia is severe memory loss. The amount of loss ranges depending on the severity of the dementia. Individuals may forget the names of people they have known all their lives or what they ate for dinner just hours after eating. People with dementia also have difficulty communicating, organizing, and reasoning. They will begin to lose their ability to carry out ADLs, or activities of daily living, and as the disease worsens, will most likely be unable to live on their …show more content…
The most common thing depression is mistaken dementia. The difference between diagnoses is that depressed individuals often exaggerate their mental difficulties, while individuals with dementia minimize them. If dementia is caused medication, a person may poses side effects that resemble dementia such as confusion, coughing, diarrhea, and nausea. Doctors will switch medications in order to lessen side effects. Doctors may also misdiagnose dementia with diseases, as many diseases cause temporary memory loss and decrease in cognitive ability. In order to get the most accurate report possible, many procedures will be completed in addition to physical and neurological examinations. These procedures will most likely include, but are not limited to, a detailed history of the patient’s life and family, a mental status evaluation, laboratory tests, an electroencephalogram, a CT scan, and a psychiatric evaluation. This is also the best time to discuss the nature of the disease, prognosis, and treatment options with a
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