DEMENTIA SYMPTOMS

Dementia is marked by a gradual impoverishment of thought and other mental activities. Losses eventually affect virtually every aspect of mental life. The slow progression of dementia is in contrast with delirium, which involves some of the same symptoms, but has a very rapid onset and fluctuating course with alteration in the level of consciousness. However, delirium may occur with dementia, especially since the person with dementia is more susceptible to the delirium-inducing effects of may types of drugs.

Symptoms include:

• Memory losses. Memory loss is usually the first symptom noticed. It may begin with misplacing valuables such as a wallet or car keys, then progress to forgetting appointments, where the car was left, and the route home, for instance. More profound losses follow, such as forgetting the names and faces of family members.
• Impaired abstraction and planning. The person with dementia may lose the ability to perform familiar tasks, to plan activities, and to draw simple conclusions from facts.
• Language and comprehension disturbances. The person may be unable to understand instructions, or follow the logic of moderately complex sentences. Later, he or she may not understand his or her own sentences, and have difficulty forming thoughts into words.
• Poor judgment. The person may not recognize the consequences of his or her actions or be able to evaluate the appropriateness of behavior. Behavior may become ribald, overly-friendly, or aggressive. Personal hygiene may be ignored.
• Impaired orientation ability. The person may not be able to identify the time of day, even from obvious visual clues; or may not recognize his or her location, even if familiar. This disability may stem partly from losses of memory and partly from impaired abstraction.
• Decreased attention and increased restlessness. This may cause the person with dementia to begin an activity and quickly lose interest, and to wander frequently. Wandering may cause significant safety problems, when combined with disorientation and memory losses. The person may begin to cook something on the stove, then become distracted and wander away while it is cooking.
• Personality changes and psychosis. The person may lose interest in once-pleasurable activities, and become more passive, depressed, or anxious. Delusions, suspicion, paranoia, and hallucinations may occur later in the disease. Sleep disturbances may occur, including insomnia and sleep interruptions.