WHAT IS DEMENTIA?

Dementia is a set of manifestations, between symptoms and signs, that affect memory, intellect, behavior and emotions; and, it also produces deterioration in the functioning of the person who suffers it. Dementia is not ‘insanity’ nor is it a normal part of aging or old age.

The deterioration of intellectual functions also known as cognitive – attention, memory, language, orientation, calculation, praxis, executive functions, gnosis, among others. it occurs progressively and at first the onset of the disorder may go unnoticed or unclear. Associated with the deterioration of intellectual functions, there are changes in emotions and behavior. Depressive, anxious symptoms, great stress, problems with sleep may occur. The behaviors can become inappropriate, observing agitation, irritability, aggressiveness in the bearer of evil. In addition, this alteration causes deterioration of personal, work, family, and social functioning, causing over time inability to carry out activities of daily and instrumental life.

Dementia is caused by brain damage or disorders and there are many causes that can produce it. Thus, we have that one of the dementias, by the way the most frequent, is Alzheimer’s disease; Vascular dementia and Lewy body dementia frequently follow.

The term “senile dementia” has now fallen into disuse. Term that refers to the onset of dementia after 65 years of age, but does not tell us anything about the cause that produces it.

The word dementia comes from the Latin “dementia” and means quality of getting out of your mind. The components are the prefix “de” (withdrawal, deprivation), “mens” (mind) and, the suffix “ia” (quality).

Dementia can be produced by different causes as we see below in the figure.

There are many causes of dementia, we reiterate the most frequent is Alzheimer’s but it is not the only one.