Page 9 - Dementia Awareness

Dementia Awareness

Session 3 Diagnosis and Maximising Your Chances

Are you concerned about yourself or someone close to you having a Dementia?

The following list covers many of the common areas of concern, if changes occur in these areas it is worth
investigating further. The cause may well be something else that can be easily treated and bring peace of m
Recent memory loss.

 Difficulty performing familiar tasks.
 Problems with Language.
 Disorientation in space and time.
 Poor – decreased judgement.
 Problems with abstract thinking
 Misplacing things
 Changes in mood or behavior
 Changes in personality
 Loss of initiative.

NOTE: Changes are normal. It is a persistent change over several of these points that has a impact on your
ability to do everyday tasks that is significant.

Many of the symptoms of Dementia may appear many years before the disease becomes apparent or can be
properly diagnosed. Usually it is only in hindsight that we recognise these early symptoms but at the time
they are not indicative of Dementia.

Getting a Diagnosis
Getting a diagnosis of Dementia (let alone an accurate diagnosis) can be difficult and take a long time. The
starting point would be to talk to your GP. While most GP’s are not skilled at diagnosing Dementia, they can
rule out many other causes of your concerns by normal blood tests, MRI’s etc. You may then be referred
onto specialist in other fields.

One simple screening test you may be given may be described as a “mini-mental”. You may be asked some
simple questions such as who is the current prime minister of Australia, to count backwards from 100 in
multiples of 7 or draw a clock face. What is important with these simple tests is not so much on how you
perform, but on how your performance varies over time.
Once (and if) diagnosed you may be able to put in place strategies that will delay the progress of the disease
and maintain your quality of life. Some of the symptoms may even be treatable. Hence, getting an accurate
and early diagnosis can be beneficial.

Risk Factors
Some of the risk factors associated with dementia can be managed through lifestyle changes or appropriate
medical treatments. The risk factors for Dementia are similar for that of many chronic conditions, such as;

 Cardiovascular (Brain infarcts, heart disease, hypertension, smoking)
 Diabetes
 High cholesterol
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 Family History
 Head Injury

Many of these factors we can control.

Become Dementia Aware Become a Dementia Friend