Patient and caregiver were instructed on types of dementia as follows:
Various parts of the brain carry distinct functions and depending on the part of brain affected, individuals present with compromised mental functions accordingly. Depending on the part(s) of brain affected and the causative factors, dementia can be of many different types with varying presenting features as follows:
- Alzheimer’s dementia: This is the most common type of dementia accounting for about 60% – 80% of all the dementia cases. A protein normally found in the brain, beta-amyloid, becomes abnormally folded, aggregates into clumps, and form plaques in Alzheimer’s patients, which contributes to impaired brain function and cognitive decline. Hippocampus, a part of brain in the temporal lobe, is the center for learning and memory, which is mainly affected in Alzheimer’s patients. This impairs Alzheimer’s patients from any new learning and forming memories.
- Vascular dementia: Vascular dementia is associated with reduced blood flow to the brain, compromising the delivery of oxygen and essential nutrients to the affected parts of the brain. Brain cells are highly dependent on oxygen and nutrients and impaired blood flow can seriously make them vulnerable, thereby causing irreparable loss. Individuals with history of major stroke event due to blockage of a large blood vessel in the brain can present with sudden and sharp decline in cognitive functions, as part of onset of dementia. Vascular dementia can also present as a slow evolving and gradual cognitive decline, secondary to multiple small unnoticed and insignificant strokes over a period of time involving many small blood vessels in a wide-spread area of the brain.
- Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus: This is a condition in which excess cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the ventricles of brain. This excess fluid volume in the ventricles results in enlargement of ventricles, which can compress and damage the surrounding brain tissue. This damage to the brain tissue can lead to cognitive decline in individuals, precipitating dementia.
