Dementia is a severe loss of thinking abilities that interferes with a person’s ability to perform daily activities such as working, driving, and preparing meals. Other brain diseases that can cause dementia include Alzheimer’s disease and multiple strokes.

Dementia is a general term for loss of memory and other mental abilities severe enough to interfere with daily life. It is caused by physical changes in the brain.

Vascular Dementia

• Second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer’s disease

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Lewy Bodies

• Visual hallucinations

• Slowness

• Gait Imbalance

• Parkinsonian movement feature

Mixed Dementia

Combination of two or more types of dementia

Parkinson’s Disease

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Alzheimer's is the most common type of dementia; accounts for an estimated 60 to 80 percent of cases.

Difficulty remembering names and recent events is often an early clinical symptom; apathy and depression are also often early symptoms. Later symptoms include impaired judgment, disorientation, confusion, behavior changes and difficulty speaking, swallowing and walking. Revised guidelines for diagnosing Alzheimer’s were published in 2011 recommending that Alzheimer’s be considered a slowly progressive brain disease that begins well before symptoms emerge.

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Source: National Institute on Aging