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:
- Lewy body dementia: This is a condition characterized by deposition of abnormal protein, Lewy bodies, in the brain. Deposition of these abnormal proteins result in damage to the brain tissue, contributing to development of cognitive decline, dementia, and associated movement difficulties.
- Parkinson’s disease dementia: Individuals with Parkinson’s disease can also present with deposition of abnormal protein, Lewy bodies, in the brain later in the course of illness. As Parkinson’s disease gets worse over time, these individuals can present with cognitive decline, dementia, and movement difficulties.
- Frontotemporal dementia: Tau proteins help with normal function of brain cells. Mutations in the gene coding for the Tau protein can result in abnormal Tau protein. This abnormal tau protein deposited in frontal and temporal lobes of the brain can result in damage to the brain cells in these 2 lobes, thereby significantly affecting the functions performed by these 2 lobes. Individuals with damage to frontal and temporal lobes can present with inability to reason, poor decision-making ability, impaired judgment, mood disturbances, language difficulties with inability to express oneself and inability to understand what others say, loss of social inhibitions and inappropriate social behaviors resulting in poor associations, and loss of empathy. Issues concerning memory can also occur in the later part of illness.
- Huntington’s disease: This is an inherited, progressively worsening degenerative disorder involving the nerve cells in the brain. Individuals with Huntington’s disease can present with cognitive decline, involuntary movements, abnormal behavioral changes, and psychosocial issues like anxiety, depression, and psychosis.
