When people ask me about Mom, I tell them she suffers from LBD. Of course, they give me a quizzical look. I tell them she's in Memory Care. Then, they make the assumption she has Alzheimer's. Although the sign post states "Alzheimer's Care", she doesn't suffer from that particular type of dementia. The sign should read, "Dementia Care", but for now, that's neither here nor there.
In 1994, according to sources I was reading back then, Dementia was classified into one category - Alzheimers. There were no others that were recognized, and this seemed a good umbrella under which to place them all. After all, my grandmother (maternal) was diagnosed in 1984, September, with Alzheimer's. Back then, there was relatively little known about the condition, and so research was in its infancy, and they attempted to figure it out.
Since then, much has been done. There are different types of dementia that are recognized. Earlier in this blog, I have given these types - Vascular, Parkinsonian, Lewy Body, Alzheimers, which make up the majority of recognizable forms. There are also other forms: Cruetzfeldt-Jakob, Down Syndrome, Frontotemporal, Huntington's Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Mixed Dementia, Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, Posterior Cordical Atrophy, Traumatic Brain Injury, and Korsakoff Syndrome.
Vascular Dementia
Vascular dementia is a decline in thinking skills caused by conditions that block or reduce blood flow to the brain, depriving brain cells of vital oxygen and nutrients. (https://www.alz.org/dementia/vascular-dementia-symptoms.asp) Vascular dementia can be related to Alzheimers, and Lewy Body Dementias if the blood vessels are blocked, and the afflicted begin to have sudden changes in their thinking; this can happen after a stroke, or a series of small strokes. Experts prefer the term - Vascular Cognitive Impairment (VCI) because the impairment, while also a possible element of Alzheimers (AD) and Lewy Body (LBD) can range from mild to severe in the vascular thinking changes. (Alz.org). VCI can also be reversed in some cases. This happens when a patient has a stroke, and through Physical Therapy, and a good team of doctors work with the patient to restore the blood flow to the affected blood vessels. However, this is not always the case. For More on VCI, I invite you to visit The Alzheimer's Association Web Page. There are also some books which address this condition, which may be quite helpful to those attempting to understand and research it. Alzheimer's Dementia
Symptoms are the inability to retain short-term information, being unable to carry on a conversation as one normally would, experiencing paranoia about the people, places, situations, around one's environment, and the inability to function properly in one's environment as one normally would. This is a progressive disease, and while there are treatments that can slow the process, nothing can stop it from taking hold and staying until death. For more information about the symptoms and treatments, please visit the Alzheimer's Association Web Page on Symptoms. Parkinson's Disease Dementia -Parkinson's disease dementia is an impairment in thinking and reasoningthat eventually affects many people with Parkinson's disease. (alz.org) I'm not going to go into detail on this one, as it is caused by the same deposits on the brain (but in a different area from the start) as with Lewy Body Dementia (LBD or DLBS), as is Parkinson's disease. The abnormal bodies with Parkinson's latch on to the mobility portion of the brain, and is made of the alphasynuclein protein, the fuction of which is still unknown. There are similarities with the plaque building on the brain, as with the tangles. Alzheimer's Association states that Parkinson's is fairly common in those over the age of 65, with 2% of the population afflicted (if you ask me, that's not really a 'common' affliction). The Lewy Bodies travel to the other regions of the brain which affect processing, and that's when the dementia begins its nastiness. Lewy Body Dementia - Lewy Body Dementia (Or Dementia with Lewy Bodies) is the same deposit on the brain's processing center as with Parkinson's. It is made up of the alphasynuclein protein, and develops plaques and tangles on the brain. They can then travel down to the other function centers of the brain. LBD is the 3rd most common type of dementia. According to the Lewy Body Dementia Association ( http://www.lbda.org/category/3437/what-is-lbd.htm ) "LBD is a multisystem disease and typically requires a comprehensive treatment approach. This approach involves a team of physicians from different specialties who collaborate to provide optimum treatment of each symptom without worsening other LBD symptoms. Many people with LBD enjoy significant improvement of their symptoms with a comprehensive approach to treatment, and some can have remarkably little change from year to year. - See more at: http://www.lbda.org/category/3437/what-is-lbd.htm#sthash.PGKiIWXC.dpuf I know I've discussed many of the symptoms and some of the consequences of the ailment, in earlier posts, but people still keep asking what it is exactly. To be honest, I'm still learning. Mom is doing fine. She's in and out of it - it comes and goes. There are times she demonstrates paranoia of people coming in and stealing from her, but we nearly always find things behind her bed pillows, in her drawers, under chairs (where she put them to hide from others - but she does such a fine job on herself, as well). She is walking slow, but it seems her energy level is high. She isn't appearing to be off-balance, but to be sure I tend to hold her hand just in case (something she sometimes detests, wondering aloud if I really need to keep her in check - "I'm not your child, you know!") So, I'm still delving into the books. Much of this is sharing for my own benefit, as well. If you've other resources, please let me know and I will ponder a gander at them! | ||||||
No comments:
Post a Comment