Overview Of The Major Types Of Dementia
Lewy Body Dementia
Between ten and fifteen percent of all dementia cases are Lewy body dementia. Tiny deposits of alpha-synuclein, a protein that develops in the brain's nerve cells, are known as Lewy bodies. The precise mechanism linking the development of Lewy bodies to dementia is not clear. However, it is thought to be associated with low acetylcholine and dopamine. Another theory is connection loss between nerve cells. Lewy bodies developing in the base of the brain cause Parkinson's disease. The cognitive symptoms of Lewy body dementia are the result of Lewy bodies developing in the brain's outer layers.
Lewy body dementia patients may experience changes in their attention and alertness. Visual hallucinations may accompany these alterations. Lewy body dementia patients may experience poor regulation of the autonomic nervous system that controls pulse, sweating, blood pressure, and digestive processes. Other common symptoms of Lewy body dementia are visuospatial problems, sleep difficulties, disorganized speech, confusion, and dizziness.
Mixed Dementia
Mixed dementia is only used in cases where a patient exhibits clear clinical features of more than one cognitive disease that contribute to their dementia symptoms. One in every ten dementia patients will have more than one type of the disease. Mixed dementia is more prevalent among older individuals, such as those who are over seventy-five years old. In most cases of mixed dementia, the affected individual will deal with more symptoms of one type of dementia than the others.
The form of dementia that produces more symptoms is referred to as the predominant form of dementia. The two most common variations of mixed dementia are Alzheimer's disease with vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease with Lewy body disease. Only a few medications, called cholinesterase inhibitors, have shown efficacy in the treatment of mixed dementia. Medications that prevent vascular problems and strokes may also be used to treat mixed dementia.
