Dementia Symptoms

Comorbidities

Dementia is not merely a problem of memory. Additional mental and behavioral problems often affect people who have dementia, and may influence quality of life, caregivers, and the need for institutionalization.

Depression affects 20-30% of people who have dementia, and about 20% have anxiety. Psychosis (often delusions of persecution) and agitation/aggression also often accompany dementia. Each of these needs to be assessed and treated independent of the underlying dementia.

Risk to self and others

The Canadian Medical Association Journal has reported that driving with dementia could lead to severe injury or even death to self and others. Doctors should advise appropriate testing on when to quit driving.

In the United States, Florida's Baker Act allows law enforcement and the judiciary to force mental evaluation for those suspected of suffering from dementia or other mental incapacities.

In the United Kingdom, as with all mental disorders, where a sufferer could potentially be a danger to themselves or others, they can be detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 for the purposes of assessment, care and treatment. This is a last resort, and usually avoided if the patient has family or friends who can ensure care.

The United Kingdom DVLA (Driving & Vehicle Licensing Agency) states that Dementia sufferers who specifically suffer with poor short term memory, disorientation, lack of insight or judgement are almost certainly not fit to drive - and in these instances, the DVLA must be informed so said license can be revoked. They do however acknowledge low-severity cases and early sufferers, and those drivers may be permitted to drive pending medical report.

Further Reading

• What is Dementia?
• Dementia Diagnosis
• What Causes Dementia?
• Dementia Prevention
• Dementia Treatment

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Dementia" All material adapted used from Wikipedia is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Wikipedia® itself is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.