27 Aug Alzheimer’s & Dementia Care

What is the Difference Between Alzheimer’s & Dementia?

Dementia care is a hot topic! Contributing to this topic is the rising number of people being diagnosed with dementia, the costs of care, and limited understanding of how to help someone living with dementia. Therapists trained in dementia care can provide a vast array of support including assessing for dementia-related memory loss, educating caregivers about dementia, and facilitating continued independence with daily activities for those living with dementia.

In this post, we will define dementia, discuss the different types of dementia (including Alzheimer’s), and provide an overview about the functional and cognitive changes impacted by dementia.

What is Dementia?

Dementia is (drum roll, please) not an actual disease. Yes, you read that correctly. Dementia is not a disease but rather an umbrella term that includes a group of symptoms, which affect mental processing in such a way that it interferes with a person’s ability to properly function through daily tasks.

Some forms of dementia are reversible, such as those caused by major depression, stroke, or tumors. However, others are irreversible. Irreversible dementias are categorized as Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD’s). ADRD’s include Alzheimer’s Disease (remembering that the word ‘disease’ is a misnomer), Vascular Dementia, Lewy-Body Dementia, and Frontotemporal Dementia.

What are types of Dementia?

Common types of ADRD necessitate further explanation and understanding in order to differentiate between the types of dementias as well as mitigate harm caused by particular drugs with some dementias.

Alzheimer’s Disease

• Progressive in nature
• Emotions such as agitation, apathy, anxiety, and depression are often present
• Characterized by loss of function to perform daily activities such as driving, grocery shopping, dressing, self-feeding
• Has no known cure

Vascular Dementia

• More common in men
• Often occurs concurrently with Alzheimer’s
• A typical sign in a disturbance in gain
• The person is often more child-like and dependent
• Has an abrupt onset which means a very noticeable decline in daily function will be obvious in a short period of time

Lewy-Body Dementia

• Speed of thinking is slow
• Course of symptoms fluctuate which means the person’s best ability to function may vary day to day
• Usually present with hallucinations and signs of parkinsonism. A common hallucination involves people or children outside in the yard or trees. Parkinsonism includes symptoms of Parkinson’s such as shuffling when walking, tremors, and rigidity throughout limbs.
• People with this type of dementia should avoid taking typical antipsychotic medications, such as Thorazine or Haldol as severe reactions may occur. *Please ask your doctor or neurologist for more information about this subject.

Frontotemporal Dementia

• Impaired performance of activities of daily living
• Includes Primary Progressive Aphasia
• The most common sign is extreme change in personality & communication

What is the impact of Dementia?

As you read through each type of common dementia, there is a common trend – changes in cognition in such severity that independent performance of daily activities is interrupted. In other words, memory loss affects function. So, what is function?

Function is basically everything we do, which is comprised of the following four points; emotional, sensory, physical, and cognitive components. When the cognitive component, which includes memory, attention, problem solving, and sequencing is affected, a person will no longer be able to function in their everyday activities at their maximum ability.

Cognitive Changes of Dementia

When trying to determine if your cognitive changes are normal or the beginning of dementia, first take a closer look at the cognitive component of memory, specifically short-term memory. An example of short-term memory is recognizing a person you saw a few minutes ago. Someone with dementia will not recognize the person and will probably note attempt to engage the person. Someone with age-related memory loss may say stick out their hand and state, “I recognize your face, but not your name.”

To help eliminate the guesswork, the Alzheimer’s Association has set up a wonderful resource that provides 10 signs of Alzheimer’s dementia vs. typical age-related cognitive changes. Visit alz.org for all the details.

Finally, should you continue to feel concerned, a therapist trained in dementia care can assess  you or your loved one for signs and symptoms of cognitive changes and refer you to a physician (including your primary care physician or neurologist) for an appropriate diagnosis. In addition, a therapist trained in dementia care can educate about the stages of dementia, how to engage someone with dementia throughout multiple stages, and how to deal with personal emotional responses including anger, guilt, and grief.

*Whatever you decide to do, please do something!

Denial is a very strong defense mechanism that does no favors to the person with dementia or the caregiver. Please seek whatever help you feel you need!

And, if you are reading this blog wondering about your own cognitive state, this self-assessment can be performed independently. If you do well, keep it as a baseline. If you have a less than stellar outcome, take a copy to your doctor.

At Trio Rehabilitation & Wellness Solutions, Jennica Colvin, Occupational Therapist/Owner and Karen Ross, CCC-SLP are trained in dementia care and therapy. Give us a call at 830-755-6091 if you want to learn more about dementia care and therapy.