Deal with dementia by learning how to spot the signs of Britain’s biggest killer
Sun doctor Dr Keith Hopcroft can help you look out for tell-tale signs giving you time to separate the senior moments from something more serious
SENIOR moment? Or worried it could be something more serious, like dementia?
I’m not surprised. After all, there’s a lot of it about.
So let’s suppose you’ve got real concerns about, say, your mum.
What are the signs that she may be developing dementia? When should you act? And what will happen when you do?
It can be tricky working out what’s straightforward absent-mindedness, normal ageing or the early stages of something more serious.
Clues to dementia are increasing slips of the memory for recent events and for the names of friends, family or everyday objects.
She might also have trouble following conversations or the TV — plus she might start to get bewildered or lost, even in familiar places.
Once this is starting to affect daily life, it’s probably time to grasp the nettle. And that can be easier said than done. Your mum might be quite happy to have a chat with her GP about it — which is exactly the right thing to do.
On the other hand, she may not like the idea at all.
Try gentle persuasion. And find out why she’s not keen.
Maybe she thinks her memory trouble is natural at her age, or perhaps she genuinely hasn’t noticed a problem. Or maybe she’s scared about what the doctor might say. Talk it through, explain your concerns and encourage her to make an appointment. And go with her if she’ll let you. If not, you might need to have a quiet word with her doc beforehand to flag up your worries.
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So what will the GP do? At this point, it’s more about ruling other problems out than ruling dementia in. That’s because there are many other causes of memory trouble, including medication side-effects, thyroid trouble, stress and depression.
He’ll talk it over with your mum, get your version of events and then probably arrange some blood tests. He may also do a quick “brain test” involving some questions and memory checks.
If your mum performs poorly in this test — and there’s no other obvious cause for her symptoms — then sadly dementia is certainly on the cards.
The jury’s still out at this stage, though. To get a definite diagnosis, your mum will need a more detailed assessment.
This will usually mean being sent to a local specialist “memory clinic” — cue more questions, tests and, probably, a brain scan. Armed with all that information, her memory specialist may then be able to decide whether it really is dementia, and what sort.
But it’s not always that straightforward.
Sometimes, the picture is not clear-cut. In which case, the specialist might keep your mum under observation to monitor her progress.
The worse she gets — especially if it happens rapidly — the more likely he will say it is dementia.
And if she does become dementia victim number 850,001 — well, it’s not good news, but at least you both know where you stand.
And that, in turn, should trigger some action including, for example, information on what to expect, support to help her manage at home and, sometimes, medication to slow the disease.
Charities such as can be invaluable, too. There’s no cure, of course. But there’s plenty that can be done to help.
And if it does turn out to have been a simple senior moment after all, she can forget the whole thing. In a good way.