The difference between alzheimer’s and dementia
People often confuse the term Alzheimer’s and Dementia and take them as two similar diseases. However, Alzheimer’s and Dementia are entirely different conditions that shouldn’t be mistaken as same. While Dementia refers to a group of symptoms, a syndrome and not a specific disease, Alzheimer’s is a disease that forms a part of dementia. It is the most common type of Dementia which occurs due to the weakening of the brain cells and causes impairment of the memory and cognitive functions. Dementia, on the other hand, is a broader concept of which Alzheimer’s is a part of. It affects mental, cognitive tasks like reasoning and memory. The term Dementia is the name of a group of brain disorders that make thinking difficult, memory weak, affects our reasoning and decision-making capabilities, and even starts controlling our emotions. The symptoms of Alzheimer’s and Dementia can overlap, but there are some differences which should be noted carefully in order to clearly understand the difference between Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
Meaning and symptoms of Dementia
As stated earlier, Dementia is not a disease but clinical representation or symptom of a disease. There are around 200 types of Dementia of which Alzheimer’s is a part. So if you are told that you have Dementia, it does not mean you have Alzheimer’s but may suffer other types of Dementia like Parkinson’s, Vascular Dementia, Lewy Bodies Dementia (LBD), or even mixed Dementia where a person suffers from more than one type of Dementia, etc.
People are more likely to suffer from dementia as they age. Its symptoms include:
Early symptoms are easy to overlook as they include minor remembering and memory problems. However, with time the difficulty and problems start to escalate. Patients have a hard time in remembering things and in taking care of themselves and therefore become increasingly dependent on their family members and relatives.
Meaning and symptoms of Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s is a progressive disease that slowly and gradually affects our reasoning and memory. While to some extent Dementia is treatable and reversible, such thing is not possible in Alzheimer’s. It is incurable, but there are options to manage it. Around 60-80% people who are suffering from Dementia, have Alzheimer’s. Its symptoms get worse with time and generally appear after 60 years of age. Its symptoms include:
Some types of Dementia might share some of these symptoms like LBD (Lewy Body Dementia) includes some of the Alzheimer’s symptoms like hallucinations, changes in thinking, reasoning and growing confusion. Keep in mind the different symptoms between Alzheimer’s and Dementia.
Different treatment patterns for Alzheimer’s and Dementia
Treatment of Dementia depends on the kind of Dementia and the cause of it. Once the cause is found, you can start with the treatment and counselling. While there is no said cure for Alzheimer’s disease, once its symptoms start to appear nothing can be done to reverse them or stop them. But there are some tests which can be done to determine the cause of it.
Alzheimer’s Treatment
Dementia Treatment
While for some people the difference between Alzheimer’s and Dementia is clear, many still consider them as interchangeable terms. Thus, the most important need is to create awareness so that the difference between the two is cleared. With the increasing awareness, it might lead to increase in the research funding so that better cure and treatment can be introduced to people’s well being.