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Paper on Dementia

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Dementia is a type of disorder that affects the central nervous system. It’s not a disease itself but a group of symptoms that characterize disease and conditions. It’s commonly defined as a decline in intellectual functioning that is severe enough to interfere with the ability to perform routine activities. It causes significant loss of intellectual abilities, such as memory capacity, severe enough to interfere with social or occupational functioning. Dementia‘s a general term that also includes specific disorders like vascular dementia as well as others. Doctors typically would find out about the patients medical history before diagnosing them with Dementia, finding any possible risks that would increase a patient’s chance of having …show more content…

Treatment for Dementia requires the patient to be under constant medical care. Most families are responsible for taking care of the patient day to day. Medical focus should be on optimizing the individual’s health and quality of life, while helping the family cope with the many challenges that occur with taking care of the patient. The medical care of the patient also depends on the underlying condition which often consists of medications and non-drug treatments such as behavioral therapy. If the Dementia is related to a hypothyroidism, treatment would be thyroid hormone replacement. Currently there are few medications on the market that have been shown to help, a bit. Dementia is difficult to prevent because what causes it is unknown. People who have vascular Dementia may be able to prevent future declines by lowering the risk of heart disease and stroke. As with most illness the best way to try to prevent it is to stay healthy and take care of yourself by eating right, exercising regularly, and not smoking. Following those guidelines should help keep blood pressure down and reduce risk of stroke. Also in older people who are affected by Dementia more than younger people, staying involved socially and learning are two more good ways to help to stay alert. It is also a good idea to visit the doctor if you are over the age of seventy and get tested for hypertension as well, to help prevent a chance of a

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