Spot the cause of dementia in the elderly
As the age increases with the aging process occurring quickly, there will be many diseases in the elderly. In which, dementia is a quite common and dangerous disease that the elderly can not remember at all, cannot be aware of their surroundings, and must be cared for all day by someone. So what causes dementia in the elderly? The content in today’s article we will learn about the causes of dementia in the elderly.
Causes of Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer‘s disease is a brain disease that causes memory loss, affects thoughts and actions, and disrupts the cognitive functions of the patient. Alzheimer’s is not a common neurological disease, nor is it a normal aging disease. The disease usually occurs in people aged 65 years and older, but can still occur in younger people.
The cause of dementia because of this disease is still a mystery, it is not possible to specify the reason. But scientists have come up with theories of the disease including:
+ The accumulation of a protein in the brain gradually kills brain cells.
+ The natural aging process in the elderly leads to the destruction of myelin, thereby reducing nerve conduction and killing nerve cells.
Disorder in the production and activity of oxidants in the body.
These factors are at increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease
+ The increase in age, the higher the age, the greater the risk of disease.
Family history and genetics: Those whose parents or siblings have Alzheimer’s disease are at higher risk and if more than one family member has the disease, their risk. higher.
+ People with Down syndrome.
Head trauma can also be a cause of Alzheimer’s-related dementia.
+ People with high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and high cholesterol have a much higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease than normal people.
+ Regarding gender factors, the rate of the disease among women is higher than that of men.
+ In addition, it may be due to a sedentary lifestyle, less participation in intellectual activities such as reading, inappropriate diet, drinking a lot of alcohol, smoking.
Causes of vascular dementia
Vascular dementia is one of the diseases leading to dementia in the elderly common in men over the age of 70. Patients will have problems with judgment, reasoning, or memory. Vascular dementia is also a cause of dementia in the elderly due to localized or diffuse cerebral infarction associated with cerebrovascular disease.
A stroke that blocks a cerebral artery is also one of the possible reasons for the symptoms of vascular dementia. The risk of this disease depends on the number of infarctions, meaning that the higher the number of infarctions, the higher the risk.
In addition, a blood vessel that is narrowed or damaged for a long time without being treated and left untreated is also the cause of dementia-related to vascular dementia. According to studies, the cause of cerebral blood vessels narrowed or damage is due to many factors such as old age, high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, temporal artery inflammation, scarlet fever, brain hemorrhage, diabetes.
Causes of Lewy Dementia (DLB)
Lewy body dementia (DLB), also known as Lewy dementia, causes a constant decrease in the mental and intellectual abilities of the patient. The patient will encounter problems such as visual hallucinations, difficulty concentrating, difficulty making decisions, incoherent thinking, trembling, slow movement …
What exactly the cause of this disease is yet to be found exactly. However, according to scientists, this is caused by a protein mass that forms inside brain cells. The abnormal accumulation of these protein clumps is called the Lewy body. This is the cause of dementia in the elderly.
These accumulations are deposited in the regions of the brain responsible for thinking functions, visual perception, and muscle movement. From there they affect the normal functions of the brain and gradually damage brain cells, causing the patient to eventually completely lose memory.
Causes of Parkinson’s disease
Disease Parkinson’s is a disease of the nerve cells in the brain when the group deteriorated for patients unable to control the movement of muscles. The disease does not start immediately but will develop gradually, usually in the elderly from 58 to 60 years of age and older.
Currently, the cause of Parkinson’s disease has not been found to be a specific cause. But scientists have found that in the body of people suffering from this disease the Dopamine content is significantly reduced. This content is a neurotransmitter responsible for transmitting signals between nerve fibers in the brain that play a role in the movement and coordination of body movements.
When brain cells degenerate or lose the ability to produce Dopamine, it will result in a lack of this content in the body, causing difficulties in movement.
Some other reasons that may also cause dementia in the elderly with Parkinson’s disease include:
+ Due to age leading to neurological degeneration.
+ People with a history of traumatic brain injury.
+ Constantly in contact with toxic chemicals, pesticides, herbicides.
+ Due to infection with encephalitis or cerebral vascular damage.
+ In a family with random Parkinson’s disease, family members have a higher risk of the disease than others.
Causes of frontal-temporal dementia (FTD)
Forehead-temporal dementia (FTD) is one of the causes of dementia in the elderly. This disease affects the frontal and anterior temporal lobes. These are the areas that control many action functions such as speech, language, personality, reason, types of memory.
So when sick, the patient will have changes in personality, behavior, loss of language ability, tremor, and many other problems. Symptoms worsen over the years and in the terminal stage, the patient will not remember anything, and cannot do anything that requires care.
Frontal-Temporal Dementia (FTD) has not been able to find a specific cause. The disease occurs due to the development of cell damage in the brain region associated with an abnormal accumulation of tau protein in the brain which causes dementia in the patient.
Causes of Huntington’s disease (jerky)
Huntington’s disease is an inherited disease caused by the gradual loss of nerve cells in the brain that affect mobility, perception, behavior, and memory. Therefore Huntington’s chorea is also one of the causes of dementia in the elderly.
The reason that Huntington’s disease is caused by scientists is a defect in a gene that is considered to be a common chromosomal dominant disorder. So just one copy of the abnormal gene is enough to cause disease when parents have this genetic defect and their children are up to 50% more likely to develop the disease. If a child does not inherit a genetic defect, he/she will not get Huntington’s disease and not inherit it for the next generation.
There are also a number of other factors that may increase the risk of this disease, such as:
Systemic lupus erythematosus.
+ Pathology of infection.
AIDS.
+ Due to some drugs such as sedatives or levodopa.
Endocrine or metabolic disorders such as hypoglycemia.
The causes of dementia in the elderly are caused by many diseases and these diseases are common among the elderly. A common problem that the elderly with dementia experience is the inability to take care of themselves and the inability to manage personal hygiene. This affects the psychology, spirit, and health of not only the sick but also upsets the activities of family members. Understand this adult diapers SunMate was born to take care of the elderly in the family with you.
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Hopefully, the causes of dementia in the elderly in the article will help you have more useful information to care for the elderly in the family. Besides, do not forget to give Sunmate adult diapers to grandparents and parents as a meaningful gift to show the care and understanding of children and grandchildren.