Falling Falling Feel the Weight of the World Pulling Down Again and I Know It True

Earlier this week, while I was listening to a social work colleague (Mary Hulme of Moonstone Elderliness) give a talk on dementia at the public library, the following question came up:

"How can 1 keep Alzheimer's from getting worse?"

Now, Alzheimer'due south illness — the about common underlying cause of dementia symptoms — does slowly go worse no matter what. (Given enough years, it will eventually damage the encephalon to the bespeak of causing a slow death, which is why Alzheimer's is a concluding disease.)

But on the other hand, we do know that some things tend to deadening the progression of encephalon decline, whereas other things seem to speed up the decline. In other words, the actions we take — and don't take — can influence a person'southward dementia journeying.

In my experience, people frequently have heard near things that might ho-hum down decline (practise is one of my favorites).

Only it seems to me that people are frequently much less well-informed well-nigh the things that tin speed up Alzheimer's decline. This is too bad, because often information technology is possible to have actions to avoid or minimize things that might cause dementia to get worse faster.

Then today I'm going to write well-nigh what I think is the virtually important of these potentially dementia-accelerating problems:delirium.

Delirium: What it is, why information technology matters

Delirium is a country of worse-than-usual confusion brought on past disease or some kind of stress on the body or mind. It is especially common during hospitalization.

Although the actress confusion of delirium does tend to get better with time (and of course with the treatment of whatever affliction or stress brought on the delirium), it's very of import to know the following facts:

• Some people with dementia who experience delirium never recover all the fashion back to their previous level of thinking ability. Instead, they settle at a new, lower level of mental power.
• People who've experienced delirium tend to mentally pass up more apace during the post-obit years than people who haven't had delirium. In this study, having had delirium was linked to thinking abilities failing twice every bit fast in the yr later on a hospitalization.
• Hospital delirium is very common in people with dementia. This study found that delirium afflicted 32% of patients with dementia during hospitalization.

In other words, experiencing delirium is common, and can actually speed the decline of Alzheimer's or another dementia.

This tin can exist scary for patients and caregivers to realize. Fortunately, although it's not possible to avert all delirium (people get sick after all, or exercise need to have surgery sometimes), itis possible to take steps that accept been proven to reduce the chance that an older person volition experience delirium while hospitalized.

To acquire more virtually how you lot can help forestall delirium during an older person's hospital stay, I recommend this resource for patients and caregivers on the Hospital Elder Life Program website.

What caregivers tin practice nearly delirium

If you are caring for someone with dementia, hither are 3 things you tin do to avoid mental decline due to delirium:

1. Brainwash yourself about delirium. For case, you lot can learn more aboutwhat brings information technology on, how to accept it managed, and how to forbid it. See x Things to Know About Delirium for more.
2. Be careful almost surgery and hospitalizations. If you are because a surgery that is elective or otherwise non completely mandatory, exist very mindful of the risks of accelerating the refuse of Alzheimer's or another dementia. For a pitiful story of how a family unit came to regret like-minded to a heart valve repair for an older woman with dementia, read this New York mag story.
3. Acquire to spot delirium in the hospital. If you are a caregiver and your loved one with dementia has to be hospitalized, try to aid hospital staff monitor for delirium. Yep, information technology's their chore to do, but studies have shown that busy hospital workers often don't notice delirium in older adults. Families tin assistance their loved ones get better care past watching for delirium and getting doctors to promptly address it if it develops.

Questions about delirium and dementia? Permit me know in the comments!

And don't forget to read our other BHWA articles on delirium:

• Infirmary Delirium: What to know & do
• 10 Things to Know Most Delirium (more in-depth and covers delirium vs dementia)

clarkwhisele.blogspot.com

Source: https://betterhealthwhileaging.net/avoid-delirium-reduce-alzheimers-decline/

Share this post