This can be caused by a stroke or hardening or thickening of the artery walls which impedes the flow of blood. The vascular system can also be damaged by heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes. The brain cells eventually die and this leads to the onset of vascular dementia. If these conditions are treated early enough the onset of dementia may be delayed or even halted. There are different types of vascular dementia and they are dependent on which part of the brain has been damaged and how the damage was caused, as different parts of the brain control different functions of the mind and body.
2. Dementia is caused by neurons not working properly or dying. This often changes the amount of the neurotransmitters with obvious effects on brain functions. Small blood vessels in the brain become blocked preventing oxygen reaching nearby brain cells. This causes a gradual decline in mental ability.
In time, chemical connections between brain cells are lost and some cells die. Vascular dementia – If the oxygen supply to the brain is reduced because of narrowing or blockage of blood vessels, some brain cells become damaged or die. This causes vascular dementia. The symptoms can occur either suddenly following one large stroke, or over time through a series of small strokes or damage to small blood vessels deep in the brain. Mixed dementia – This is when someone has more than one type of dementia, and a mixture of symptoms.
It is not known exactly what causes this process to begin, although people with Alzheimer's disease have been found to have abnormal amounts of protein (amyloid plaques), fibres (tau tangles) and a chemical called acetylcholine in the brain.These reduce the effectiveness of healthy neurons (nerve cells that carry messages to and from the brain), gradually destroying them. Describe a range of causes of dementia syndrome.
This may be as a result of a stroke or mini strokes although it can be caused by preventable conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. Dementia with Lewys Bodies (DLB) is caused by small deposits of proteins found in the nerve cells of the brain. Their presence in the brain leads to the degeneration of brain tissue. This is the third most common form of dementia. Rarer forms of dementia are: Fronto temperal dementia which is brain damage usually focused in the front or temporal parts of the brain.
Although there a small amount of cases of Alzheimer’s and frontotemporal dementia can be inherited from a previous generation. Vascular dementia is where the blood supply to the brain is interrupted, if there is restricted or stopped blood supply to the brain that’s when the cells being to die which results in brain damage. * Alzheimer’s disease Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, this form of the disease is the loss of cells in brain which causes the brain to shrink. The medical term for this is ‘Atrophy’. The most affected part of the brain is the Cerebral Cortex; this part
This can occur following a stroke or a series of TIA’s which can then result in stopping the blood accessing the blood vessels. If the blood does then not reach the brain, the brain cells dying off. Fronto-temporal Dementia: Pick’s Disease: This is caused when the frontal temporal lobes are damaged. This is the part of the brain that controls our behaviour, language and emotion. When this area of the brain is damaged is can cause it can
Moving the eyes upwards can be due to old age, but difficulty in moving them down is the key. Other symptoms include falling backwards, balance problems, slow movements, irritability, apathy and depression. Corticobasal degeneration is a rare form of dementia. It can affect the brain in many different places. One common sign is losing the ability to move a limb.
Dementia is basically damage in the brain where there is a build-up of abnormal proteins which causes a decline in mental ability. The decline can be either rapid or a gradual process. Typical causes of Dementia can be one specific disease such as Alzheimer’s which accounts for 60-80% of cases, or Parkinson’s or motor neurone disease, however Dementia is not a specific disease but rather describes a wide range of symptoms. In most cases, dementia is not inherited directly from family members, although a small number of cases can be inherited from family members. Other less common causes of dementia may include depression, head injuries, alcohol misuse, brain tumours, infections of the brain such as HIV, Strokes, or lack of Vitamin B in the diet.
Dementia Report Sources: www.nhs.uk www.alzheimers.org.uk What is Dementia? Dementia is a syndrome, meaning a group of related symptoms. It's associated with a continuous decline of the abilities that the brain is capable of, eg. memory, understanding and judgement. In most cases, dementia is caused by damage to the structure of the brain.