As late as 2005, the National Institutes of Health reported that every seven seconds, a person is diagnosed with dementia. According to NIH predictions, by 2040, the percentage of persons living with dementia is expected to double, and in India and China that percentage will triple. Dementia affects persons of all ages through impairment of overall cognitive functioning. The cognitive decline includes physical, emotional and mental changes. Complications also arise in families as they cope with changes in their loved one.
Physical Decline
Physical complications of dementia may manifest as slow, acute changes in the early stages and progress to chronic debilitating conditions. Persons suffering from dementia frequently require the aid of a walker or wheelchair for mobility. A loss of bowel and bladder control usually occurs over time. Increased periods of sleep during the day are common, but dementia patients often do not sleep at night due to a decreased ability to comprehend time. Fine motor skills are lost, and Sufferers of dementia may lose fine motor skills as well as the ability to dress and feed themselves or perform personal care regimes.
Emotions and Mental Changes
Dementia sufferers often retain their long-term memory for events and people but forget new information quickly. Skills that require reasoning, such as simple mathematical calculations, become jumbled, and people are at high risk for making costly errors. Management of assets, errands that require operating a motor vehicle, and dispensing of medication may be better managed by a family member or professional caregiver.
Memory loss and increased confusion often results in significant agitation, and dementia sufferers may shout, curse and hit. Many people become paranoid and may require medication to manage their moods. Sufferers may also develop a flat affect and stop smiling, showing joy, or complaining of pain, hunger or thirst. Eventually, they need close monitoring for acute changes.
Family Stress
As family members witness the changes in their loved one, a grieving process may begin. Elizabeth Kübler Ross's five stages of the grieving process are not confined to death and dying. Quite commonly, when a diagnosis of dementia is made, family members as well as the patient slip immediately into one of the five stages. Some begin with denial; others start with anger or bargaining. Family members and the patient may disagree on the course of treatment or deny the problem. The most effective method of coping with a diagnosis of dementia is to talk to a medical professional.
The path dementia takes is individualized. Not every possible complication of dementia will manifest, and this lends credence to denying the diagnosis. Medications are available to slow the progression, however, there is no cure.
References
- National Institutes of Health
- "Pathophysiology: A 2-in-1 Reference for Nurses"; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2005
