Reference: Types of Dementia
Reference: Types of Dementia
Source: Dementia UK and National Institute of Aging.
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I’m Victoria. You can read why I’m publishing Carer Mentor here: Who Started Carer Mentor and Why?
In short, after a career climbing the corporate ladder and 18 relocations across 10 countries, I made a head-heart-gut-aligned decision to help my Mum care for my Dad. He had a litany of health issues that were destabilised by a major hospitalisation in 2015: congestive heart failure and rheumatoid arthritis were compounded with a diagnosis of vascular dementia and then bladder cancer.
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This reference document is part of The Dementia Anthology.
Explanations of Dementia and its subtypes.
Source: Dementia UK and National Institute of Aging.
Dementia UK
Around 944,000 people are estimated to be living with dementia in the UK, and someone develops the condition every three minutes.
Dementia causes changes in memory, thinking, personality and behaviour, but symptoms vary depending on which type the person has. Understanding the various types of dementia means people can get the right support to help them live better with the condition.
Here’s what you need to know about some of the most common forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia and frontotemporal dementia.
Who is at risk of Alzheimer’s disease?
Click here for the leaflet. Here is the website with more detailed information
Age is the biggest risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease. It affects one in 14 people over the age of 65, and one in six people over the age of 80.
However, it can also affect people under the age of 65 (this is known as young onset dementia).
Understanding Vascular Dementia
Click here for the leaflet. Here is the website with more detailed information.
Vascular dementia is the second most common type of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease.
Frontotemporal Dementia
Click here for the leaflet. Here is the website with more detailed information.
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is an umbrella term for a group of dementias that mainly affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, which are responsible for personality, behaviour, language and speech.
Unlike other types of dementia, memory loss and concentration problems are less common in the early stages.
FTD is a rare form of dementia affecting around one in 20 people with a dementia diagnosis.
Dementia UK has a wealth of information on six other types of Dementia. Click on the image below to go to the website and explore these types.
The National Institute of Aging (NIA):
Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of neurological conditions affecting the brain that get worse over time.
Here is a helpful video developed by NIA and a infographic below.
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I have a lovely friend who is a little further along than I am in her journey with being a caregiver for someone with dementia. We consider ourselves well informed on the topic and have previously discussed the types of dementia as outlined in the chart from the NIH at the end of this article. One sentence leapt out at me from that chart and reminded me of one our conversations. "There is currently no cure for these types of dementia." This was not a footnote for one particular type of dementia; it applied to all types in the chart. But should it?
Of all the dementias described, there is a possibility, and even a good chance, that with no further stroke damage a marked improvement can be had in those diagnosed with vascular dementia. The brain, even the elderly brain, is capable of regenerating pathways and returning some patients with vascular dementia, as can be done with many stroke patients, to a close to pre-mini stroke normal, again assuming further mini-strokes are prevented.
And a huge difference between vascular dementia and the other dementias in the chart is the sudden onset aspect. One week your 86 year old mother is playing duplicate bridge, has two book club meetings and has plans to go out for lunch or dinner several times, and the next week she is feverishly walking on a continuous loop around the dining room table with a walker we didn't know she owned, refusing to eat anything except chocolate milkshakes, has cut up all of her underwear and is wearing them with safety pins as fasteners because her underwear is now too small and "hurts", and calling her friends at 2 am to inform them that my father is either starving her or poisoning her.
That kind of behaviour absolutely points to vascular dementia and while the word "cure" may be too strong a descriptor, by the time my mother turned 87, she was playing bridge again, had returned to her first love - reading, and joined their condo board because she was sick and tired of listening to my father complain about their actions and decided to do something about it since he wouldn't.
In other words, the feisty, independent woman I had known my whole life, came back. She remembered her behaviour during that time - another differentiator from the other types of dementia - and it embarrassed her immensely.
So, should vascular dementia be on this chart? Yes, but only if it is recognized that it is treatable and your loved one could very well recover from it.