Dementia

Dementia is not a specific disease. It is a descriptive term for a collection of symptoms that can be caused by a number of disorders that affect the brain. People with dementia have significantly impaired intellectual functioning that interferes with normal activities and relationships.

What Causes Dementia?

Dementia occurs due to loss of brain function that occurs with certain diseases. It can affect several brain functions such as memory, thinking, language, planning, behavior and judgement. Dementias are usually progressive and worsen with time. They usually are degenerative and non reversible.

What is Dementia?

Differences Between Alzheimer's and Dementia

Dementia Diagnosis

Dementia Prevention

Dementia Symptoms

Dementia Treatment

Dementia with Lewy Bodies

Bright Light Therapy and Dementia

Aromatherapy for Dementia

Coconut Oil and Dementia

What is Mixed Dementia?

See more featured articles »

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation for Dementia

Childhood Dementia Causes

Mixed Dementia Prevention and Treatment

Mixed Dementia Symptoms and Diagnosis

Childhood Dementia Signs and Symptoms

Parkinson's Compared to Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB)

Antidepressants and Dementia: Is There a Link?

Does Depression and Anxiety Increase the Risk of Dementia?

Migraines and Dementia

Latest Dementia News and Research

Researchers receive $11 million NIH grant to evaluate a 5-minute dementia screening tool

Investigators at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Health System, Regenstrief Institute, and Indiana University School of Medicine have received an $11 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to evaluate an Einstein-developed test for assessing cognitive impairment and dementia.

8 Dec 2022

Genetic predisposition to ADHD can predict risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease

Genetic predisposition to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can predict cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease later in life, revealed an analysis published today in Molecular Psychiatry by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers.

8 Dec 2022

Study: People with higher levels of vitamin D in the brain have better cognitive function

An estimated 55 million people worldwide live with dementia, a number that's expected to rise as the global population ages.

7 Dec 2022

Tailored Activity Program extends behavioral benefits to Black people with dementia and their families

Behavioral and psychological symptoms – such as agitation and aggression – are hallmarks of dementia that occur across disease stages and types, and can negatively impact both the person living with dementia and their caregivers.

6 Dec 2022

Eating ultra-processed foods increases risk of cognitive decline

The consumption of ultra-processed foods increases the risk of cognitive decline, particularly among middle-aged adults.

5 Dec 2022

Trial aims to make it easier, convenient for patients to perform health checks and reduce pressure on GPs

A landmark trial aiming to make it easier and more convenient for patients to carry out important health checks and reduce pressure on GPs has been launched in Cornwall.

5 Dec 2022

Assisted living facilities pressed to address growing needs of older, sicker residents

Assisted living communities too often fail to meet the needs of older adults and should focus more on residents' medical and mental health concerns, according to a recent report by a diverse panel of experts.

5 Dec 2022

Does air pollution reduce cognitive function over time?

Researchers examine available studies for correlations between declining cognitive function in childhood and adult life and air pollution.

4 Dec 2022

HU begins human trial for promising treatment to reverse paralysis and language disorder after stroke

Hiroshima University started the human trial for a promising treatment that offers hope in potentially reversing paralysis and language disorder after moderate to severe stroke using therapeutically superior mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from the cranial bone.

1 Dec 2022

Scientists discover new potential mechanism for vision loss

Visual cells in the human retina may not simply die in some diseases, but are mechanically transported out of the retina beforehand.

1 Dec 2022

INPP5D gene plays key role in enabling microglial cells to prevent plaque buildup

A change in the DNA code (mutation) of a gene that plays a key role in the brain's immune defenses may prevent related cells from clearing away protein-filled clumps, a new study in mice shows.

30 Nov 2022

Study reveals wasteosomes as markers of chronic glymphatic system insufficiency

A new study led by researchers from the University of Barcelona shows that wasteosomes -;structures that act as containers for brain waste products-; indicate a malfunction of the glymphatic system, a recently discovered system that is an important brain-cleaning mechanism.

30 Nov 2022

Research findings may offer a new potential therapeutic target for Alzheimer’s disease

A new study links a gene concentrated in the brain's cleanup cells, known as microglia, to the inflammation that has increasingly emerged as a key mechanism contributing to Alzheimer's disease.

30 Nov 2022

Study reveals a more nuanced relationship between work demands and a good night's sleep

Conventional wisdom suggests that people with the most demanding jobs would have the most trouble sleeping.

30 Nov 2022

Study identifies a urinary biomarker to reveal early-stage Alzheimer’s disease

Could a simple urine test reveal if someone has early-stage Alzheimer’s disease and could this pave the way for large-scale screening programs? A new study in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience certainly suggests so. The researchers tested a large group of patients with Alzheimer’s disease of different levels of severity and healthy controls with normal cognition to identify differences in urinary biomarkers.

30 Nov 2022

Interprofessional primary care for dementia patients linked with increased ER visits

Individuals with dementia require care from a variety of healthcare providers. Interprofessional team care has been touted as most beneficial to this patient population.

29 Nov 2022

Rural Colorado tries to fill health worker gaps with apprenticeships

During her 12-hour overnight shift, Brianna Shelton helps residents at BeeHive Homes Assisted Living go to the bathroom. Many of them have dementia, and some can't get out of bed on their own. Only a few can remember her name, but that doesn't matter to her.

29 Nov 2022