Money and Legal Matters 2 - About dementia

Early stage dementia
Moderate dementia
Severe dementia
Younger people with dementia
A proper diagnosis
Treatment and research
Summary

Dementia is the progressive loss of the powers of the brain. The most common cause is Alzheimer's disease. Other causes of dementia include vascular dementias (including multi infarct dementia), Lewy body dementia, alcohol-related dementia, fronto-temporal dementia (including Pick's disease) and HIV. All of them damage and kill brain cells, so that the brain cannot work as well as it should.

Usually, the person’s memory starts to fail and there is a slow loss of ability to do simple everyday tasks. Dementia can affect every area of human thinking, feeling and behaviour. Each person with dementia is different - how the illness affects someone depends on which areas of his or her brain are most damaged.

The illness generally starts slowly with a gradual deterioration. It may have been progressing for a year or more before anyone notices something is wrong, and it can go on for 10, 15 or more years. The progress varies a lot from one person to another, so there are no firm answers about what to expect. Problems can also vary from day to day. Some changes are more common in the early stages and others tend to happen later.

In Scotland, about 58,000 people have dementia.

Early stage dementia

At first, the changes are slight. The person becomes forgetful and likely to repeat things. He or she may behave in unusual ways. The person may be inwardly worried that he or she is losing control. Some people may become withdrawn and depressed, or agitated. Some may lose interest in life and find it hard to make day-to-day plans, and some may have problems handling money. These early changes may be noticed only by close family and friends. A free booklet, Facing Dementia: Useful Information for People with Dementia, gives practical advice for people with early stage dementia on coping with the effects of the illness and sorting out practical matters. See Further reading.

Moderate dementia
As the illness goes on, the changes are greater. Memory problems get worse. The person may begin to:

• forget names of family or friends
• repeat questions over and over again
• not eat properly
• neglect personal care
• find it hard to grasp what is said
• be hard to understand at times, losing track of what he or she is saying
• become angry or upset quickly
• see or hear things that are not there
• have difficulty managing housework, food preparation, activities or interests or work
• need help with everyday tasks such as bathing and dressing
• need help with handling money.

Severe dementia

In the later stages of dementia the person may be very confused. Often he or she may not recognise even close family members. The person will need a great deal of help, for example with eating, washing, bathing and using the toilet. The person’s speech may make little sense and he or she may not understand other people. The person’s personality may have changed greatly, but he or she may remain physically well for a long time.

A free book, Coping with Dementia - A Handbook for Carers, provides information on caring and on finding services to help. See Further reading.

Younger people with dementia

Dementia is most common in older people but can affect people in their 40s or 50s or even younger. The loss of income from employment is often a major concern to younger people with dementia and their families. This booklet includes information for this group as well as for those over pension age.

A proper diagnosis

Confusion or forgetfulness do not always mean someone has dementia. Many other conditions, such as infections, depression or the side effects of medicines can cause similar problems. Dementia can only be diagnosed by ruling out other possible causes of the symptoms. It is very important to have a proper medical diagnosis, as many of these conditions can be successfully treated. Sometimes dementia can be made temporarily worse by other medical problems. If the person with dementia seems suddenly more confused, he or she should see a doctor.

Treatment and research

Although there is no cure for dementia at present, much research into causes and treatments is going on. There is also research into other aspects of the experience of the illness, which people with dementia may be asked to take part in. There are drugs which may help some people with the symptoms of the most common form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and also Lewy body dementia. More treatments are likely to become available over the next few years.

Summary

Dementia is the progressive loss of the powers of the brain.

Usually, the person’s memory starts to fail and there is a slow loss of ability.

The progress of the illness varies a lot from one person to another and may last 10, 15 or more years.

In Scotland, about 58,000 people have dementia.

In early stage dementia the changes are slight at first.

As the illness goes on, the changes are greater and memory problems get worse.

In the later stages of dementia the person may be very confused.

Dementia is most common in older people but can affect people in their 40s or 50s or even younger.

It is very important to have a proper medical diagnosis.

There are drugs which may help some people with Alzheimer’s disease or Lewy body dementia.

Dementia - Money and Legal Matters: index page

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