Medical Blog, News and Information

The value of support groups for members of families of patients with dementia is now proved beyond any doubt. As everybody reading this book will be aware, caring for a demented family member creates tremendous practical, psychological, and social problems. Carers will talk of a lack of support and information from doctors, poor understanding of [...]

Nearly all those suffering from a dementing illness will eventually lose control of their bowels and their bladder. When this problem first arises, with bed- or seat-wetting, it is essential that it is brought to the attention of the general practitioner as there are many causes of incontinence apart from dementia that older people in [...]

Many people with dementia, especially Alzheimer’s disease, become restless, anxious, and agitated. They may pace nervously up and down, talk incessantly, or fidget. This can be very wearing to carers. Sometimes it is a side-effect of medicines, but not very often. The medicines most commonly responsible are sedatives that belong to the group known as [...]

There have of course been many other approaches to developing diagnostic tests for Alzheimer’s disease. Several of these approaches have been widely reported in the media in recent years and none more so than techniques which involve an analysis of the electrical activity of the brain. Most people are familiar with the ECG (electrocardiograph), which [...]

Well, who is responsible for making the diagnosis? The answer is that we all have an important part to play. Relatives, friends, and sometimes people with dementia themselves need to face up squarely to the possibility that someone they love or care for may be developing dementia. Unless they do so and arrange for them [...]