Sociology

Dementia can be described as a severe loss of cognitive ability in a previously normal person, exceeding what is normally expected with advancing age. It may be static which comes as a result of the whole brain damage or it may be progressive leading to prolonged decline due to damage or the disease in the body. Dementia is quite common among aged populations, but it can also occur at any stage of development. Cognition is the process of thinking, perceiving, and learning. Therefore, cognitive functions which can be impaired by dementia include decision making and judgment, memory loss, spatial orientation, thinking, reasoning, attention, and verbal communication. It can also result to behavioral changes based on the part of brain damaged. For the disease to be diagnosed, the symptoms must have persisted for six months or more because dysfunctions which are observed over a short period of time are called delirium. In all the affected cognitive dysfunctions, higher mental functions are the first to be affected (Chenoweth, 2010).

In advanced stages of the disease, the affected individuals become disoriented completely not knowing what day of the week, month and even the year. These people also get lost and cannot recognize where they are. The disorientation gets worse to an extent that the person cannot identify himself. Although dementia can be treated to some degree, it usually results from causes which are progressive and cannot be cured.  In the US, about 4 -5 million individuals are suffering from some degree of dementia, and that number is expected to rise over the next few decades since the population is aging. Dementia is reported in about 1 of people between the ages of 60 -64 and about 30 -50 of people older than 85 years.  Dementia is the main reason why elderly people are sent to institutions like nursing homes. Cases of dementia have increased over the past few years, either as a result of increased awareness and more accurate diagnosis, or because of increased life expectancy which has resulted into higher numbers of elderly people in the population. An estimate which was done last year indicated that there are about 35 million people throughout the world who have some degree of dementia (Connell, Janevic  Gallant, 2001).

There are various types of dementia. There is reversible dementia which can be treated partially or completely. For dementia to be reversible, the underlying cause must be identified quickly and treated promptly. The other type of dementia is the irreversible type which is caused by a condition which cannot be treated like Alzheimers disease. People suffering from this type of dementia are rendered incapable of taking care of themselves and may need care all the time (Skoog, 1994).

The major risk factor for dementia is advanced age. It is also associated with inheritance of genes which are associated with conditions such as Alzheimers disease and Huntingtons disease. There are other infections which if not treated can result to dementia.  Metabolic diseases and drug abuse are also linked to the development of dementia. Other factors which can facilitate the occurrence of dementia include brain tumor, cardiovascular diseases like hypertension, high levels of cholesterol, and atherosclerosis. It is also associated with diabetes, injuries involving the head, organ failures like kidney and liver, thyroid disease, and deficiency of vitamins like B12, folic acid and thiamine (Dunkin  Anderson, 1998).

There are several conditions associated with dementia among them being degenerative neurological disorders such Alzheimers disease, cardiovascular diseases such as multi- infarct disease, inherited conditions such as Huntingtons disease, and other infectious conditions like HIVAids. Alzheimers disease alone is reported to be the cause of about 50-70 of all reported cases of dementia. Lou Gehrigs disease, Huntingtons disease, and Parkinsons are also reported to cause dementia. HIVAids is a viral condition that can result to Aids dementia complex especially at the terminal stages. Creutzfeldt- Jakod disease which is closely related to mad cow disease in herbivores initially present as vogue personality change, but this is later followed by speedily advancing dementia (Hughes et al., 1982).  

Another major cause of irreversible dementia is multi infarct disease. In this condition, numerous infarcts results in continuous reduction in cognition. This type of dementia is quite common in men aged above 50 years. Alcoholism can result in thiamine deficiency which is associated with seizers, and head injuries which is also a cause of dementia. Prolonged substance abuse can cause signs similar to those of dementia. Other causes can also be viral, bacterial, and fungal infections, neurosyphilis dementia, other structural abnormalities like neoplasia of the brain and metabolic disorders (Connell, Janevic  Gallant, 2001).

Symptoms of this dysfunction are related to the impairment of cognitive functions. The most common signs observed are memory loss, inability to make decisions, judgment, disorientation in time and space, and verbal communication problems. There are also behavioral changes that might be noticed. They include loss of interest in individuals hobbies, inability to care for ones self, unable to carry out household chores, and loss of personality.

Dementia results in considerable medical, social, and economic concerns since it affects individuals, their families, and health care providers. It has received huge amounts of resources and attention directed towards its medical aspects which are aimed at achieving better understanding of the disease, its causes, risk factors and treatment. Attention has also been given to the family members of the patient since they also get affected by the disease.  Families carry the burden of the patient in terms of caring and also getting the needed medication (Chenoweth, 2010).

There is no treatment available which can help reverse or even stop the disease from continuing, patients can get treatment with the available medication and also undergo cognitive training. Currently there are drugs which can be used to treat dementia and many patients have benefited from them. These drugs do not stop the disease or reverse the brain damage, but they help improve symptoms and slow the progression of the disease. They help by improving the patients quality of life, reduce the burden of giving care, and delay the progression of the disease therefore delays time for admission in the nursing homes. There is research going on to determine if these drugs can be used to manage other types of dementia (Edwards, 1993).

There are number of factors which have been identified which if put under control can prevent or even delay the onset of dementia. People with tightly controlled sugar levels score high on cognitive test unlike those with diabetes.  People Involved in intellectually stimulating activities like chess, crossword, social interactions, and playing musical instruments have low chances of developing dementia. These activities are believed to stimulate the brain in a special way therefore increasing the cognitive reserve (Connell, Janevic  Gallant, 2001).

People suffering from advanced or moderate dementia will require full time care and supervision to prevent them from hurting themselves or other people around them. They may also need to be assisted in carrying out routine activities, caring for themselves like bathing, dressing and eating. The people assisting should have some patience and understanding. There can also be changes in home arrangement to remove any objects which can present danger like keeping away sharp objects. To prevent outdoor wondering without supervision, there is need to lock the gate and other doors.