What are the types of intellectual disorders?
Dementia can be broadly divided into two categories: degenerative dementia and vascular dementia, but patients sometimes have two or more causes, the most common of which is the coexistence of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia (also known as mixed type).
Degenerative dementia
Most patients fall into this category, with the following three being the most common:
Alzheimer's disease
In Alzheimer's patients, only the memory will have obvious defects in the early stages, and the patients will become more forgetful. He may have a hard time learning new skills or doing work that requires abstract reasoning skills. The patient's personality may also change and may become melancholy. Then the patient's ability to speak, perform daily activities, and the ability to perceive the world will be questioned.
At first, the patient simply can't find the correct word for the alleged item, or use the wrong word, but gradually he becomes unable to express his meaning and becomes less and less able to understand what people are saying. In the later stages of the disease, the patient's physical and cognitive function is severely impaired. Incontinence and loss of ability to walk are common situations. They may only be able to say a word or two, or they may not recognize anyone. They need to receive care from a family member or professional.
Frontotemporal lobe dementia
Brain disorders are dominated by violations of the frontal and temporal lobes, characterized by early personality changes and loss of behavioral control, often with irrational behaviors, or early language disorders, such as expression difficulties, naming difficulties and other progressive degeneration. This type of dementia is more common in people aged 40 to 60 years, and will be younger than most people with dementia.
Louie's body dementia
Louisian body dementia accounts for 5% to 10% of people with dementia. Lewys is a brain abnormality found under a microscope during an autopsy. It was thought that only patients with Parkinson's disease would have this abnormality. However, scientists currently believe that in the brains of some dementia patients, Lewys is also spread. The symptoms of Louisian body dementia are similar to those of Alzheimer's, although in the early stages of the disease, patients with Louisian body dementia often have mild Parkinson's symptoms, visual hallucinations, and frequent falls.
Stiffness, slow movements, and poor balance are common, which can also be the cause of frequent falls. Patients with this condition tend to experience adverse side effects of antipsychotics, which should be avoided whenever possible. If it is necessary to treat delusions or hallucinations in patients with the help of antipsychotics, the lowest possible dose should also be used. In addition, patients with Louisian body dementia often have melancholic symptoms.
Vascular dementia
In the past, it was thought that dementia in the elderly was due to arteriosclerosis in the brain, but now we know that this is not the case. Patients with vascular dementia have suffered damage to some small areas of the brain due to multiple strokes, and the cumulative effects of these injuries have led to the occurrence of dementia. Vascular dementia affects several functions, such as memory, coordination, or the ability to speak, but the symptoms vary slightly depending on the area of the brain damaged.
The course of vascular dementia usually progresses in a stepwise manner, with patients usually getting worse after a certain period of time (unlike Alzheimer's, which is a gradual, very subtle decline), and then the condition seems to stabilize for a period of time, or even slightly improve. Some people with vascular dementia can get worse over time, but some may not get worse after years. Preventing another stroke can curb the progression of some vascular dementias, but some vascular dementias cannot be prevented from worsening no matter how hard you try. Immediate treatment of subsequent strokes may help reduce symptoms.
These changes can be an early symptom of dementia
The early symptoms of each dementia patient are closely related to their past work and social relations, so maintaining awareness and vigilance of the early symptoms of dementia is of great reference significance for the early diagnosis of dementia. If you find that the elders in the family have the following eight warning signs, it is recommended that you immediately seek the help of a doctor.
1. Have difficulty planning things or solving problems
The average person may sometimes have difficulties in breaking even, but people with dementia may have difficulty planning, executing plans, or dealing with numbers. For example, it is easy to have problems when cooking according to a familiar recipe or dealing with monthly bills. They can't concentrate and need more time to deal with things they were familiar with before.
2. Confused about time and place
The average person occasionally forgets what day it is, and may get lost in unfamiliar places. But people with dementia can't figure out the year, day or night, don't know where they are or how they got here, and even get lost around their homes and can't find their way home.
3. Inability to perform familiar tasks
People with dementia often forget or miss the established steps for familiar matters and cannot complete them smoothly. For example, math teachers often make mistakes in adding and subtracting arithmetic, English teachers do not know what "book" is, old drivers who drive cars often drive the wrong way, bank employees have difficulty counting banknotes, and senior chefs stir-fry dishes.
4. It is difficult to understand the relationship between visual image and space
The average person may have visual impairment due to cataracts, but people with dementia may have difficulty reading, judging distance, and deciding on color or contrast. People with dementia may mistake the mirror for someone else and feel that there is someone else in the room.
5. Poor or weakened judgment
The average person will occasionally make bad choices, but dementia patients are more frequent or more biased, such as listening to sales advertisements and paying a lot of money, or buying not fresh food, lending money to strangers, driving is prone to traffic accidents, crossing the street without looking at left and right traffic lights, dressing may not be suitable for the weather, occasions, etc.
6. Withdraw from workplace or social activities
The average person occasionally does not want to go to work or do not want to participate in social activities, but the life habits, sports, social activities, and work of dementia patients are gradually reduced. Patients become passive and avoid many interactions. I often sit in front of the TV for several hours, and I sleep more than in the past.
7. Memory loss affects life
The average person occasionally can't remember a word, but people with dementia can't think of it more often and can't remember it even after being reminded. As a result, patients often repeat questions, repeat shopping, and even repeat medications. People with dementia tend to forget what happened recently, even important dates or events. People with dementia may have difficulty keeping up with or participating in the conversation during the meeting, and the meeting may be interrupted, repetitive, or not knowing how to proceed.
8. Things are misplaced and lose the ability to look back
The average person will occasionally place items arbitrarily, but people with dementia are more frequent and exaggerated, often placing items in unreasonable or inappropriate positions, such as fruits in the closet, slippers in the quilt, toilet paper everywhere, etc. People with dementia can't go back and look for things step by step after they lose things, and they often accuse others of stealing when they can't find things.