engleski

Dementias

Dementia is a chronic, usually irreversible loss of cognition. Dementia can occur at any age but primarily affects the elderly (about 5% of those between 65 and 74 and 40% of those of 85 years of age). One of the greatest civilizational achievements is the prolongation of life expectancy. People today live longer than ever, but everyone agrees that longevity by itself is not enough - the quality of life in old age is even more important. Elderly individuals still want to be involved in society, healthy enough to participate in various activities and retain active and recognizable role in family and society till the end of their lives. The most important risk factor for the development of dementia is age, which means the longer a person lives, the higher the risk will be. Dementia can be divided in several ways: Alzheimer's or non- Alzheimer's, cortical or subcortical, irreversible or potentially reversible. Dementia can be primarily a neurodegenerative disorder that is the result of so-me other condition. The main types are Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Lewy-body dementia, frontotemporal dementia and dementia associated with HIV infection. Other disorders associated with dementia include Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, Creutzfeldt-Jakob's disease, Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker syndrome, other prion disorders and neuro-syphilis. Alzheimer's is the most common cause of dementia ; it accounts for 65% of dementia occurring in the senile. The disease is twice as common in women as compared with men, partly because women are expected to have a longer life expectancy. Diagnosis aims to distinguishing dementia from delirium and identifying the affected areas and potentially reversible causes. Treatment of dementia includes nonpharmacological and pharmacological methods. Investigations have shown that antidementives slow down the progression of the disease and delay the loss of independence and need for institutionalization.

dementia ; Alzheimer's disease ; diagnosis ; treatment

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