WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DEMENTIA AND ALZEIMER’S DISEASE?
I never cared knowing about the difference between Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. For me, it is just one and the same, loss of memory in old age.
When my 92-year-old father-in-law had memory lapses, I know that he is suffering from either Dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Since I am not in the medical profession, I searched the internet about these two health issues.
According to the Alzheimer’s Reading Room write up,
DEMENTIA is a syndrome and not a disease caused by the damage to the brain cells while ALZHEIMER’S is a disease that destroys the brain. Therefore, Alzheimer’s is one of the common causes of dementia. It is responsible for about 50%-70% of all cases of dementia.
In my experience with the care of my father-in-law, his episodes of forgetfulness and confusion grow. He had trouble keeping track of time and day. He will repeatedly ask you about the date every minute. He will be looking for his wallet time and time again. He will keep on asking over and over for people he had known and ask if they are still alive.
At one point, his condition went from bad to worst.
He has hallucinations and delusions. He kept on hearing and seeing people not really there. He feared that there were people trying to break into the house. He sometimes has trouble sleeping and be awake 2 days in a row. He sometimes has nightmares.
One of the causes of dementia is infection. He had been hospitalized for almost a month due to cellulitis, a form of skin infection.
If there is such a thing as ‘time travel’, he seems to have travelled in time for what he sees in front of him were events that happened several decades ago. It’s as if he has a movie screen in front of him.
How do you think you can prepare yourselves with this situation if you cannot remember what is happening around you anymore?
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Thanks for this simple clarification. People talk a lot about illnesses but they don't often put it in plain words. I do know people suffering from Alzheimers. Hope it cure is forthcoming. But so far, I've seen many recommendations for prevention. That's better than nothing.