Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Missy @ 03:46 PM September 25, 2008

Missy — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:46:00 -0000

I had just heard the same thing about the B12 deficiency! How interesting! I wonder if when that level is brought back to a proper place will the symptoms disappear.

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Rebecca @ 02:15 PM September 25, 2008

Rebecca — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:15:43 -0000

That is really so amazing. Its like in some way, the body is like a violin - it goes out of tune. And the older or more weakened the body, the less ability there is to keep it together.

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Anonymous @ 03:37 AM September 25, 2008

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 03:37:32 -0000

Some forms of dementia can also be caused by things like vitamin B12 deficiency!

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Bell star @ 05:45 PM April 16, 2008

Bell star — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:45:18 -0000

This delirium is now a sign to us that something medical is going wrong with Mom. Sometimes, it comes on so slowly, it's almost like a personality change. I've seen several instances in my mom in the last 5 years, but it still seems to catch me off guard when it's happening.

The tricky thing has been convincing Mom to go to a doctor at times like this, since the 'personality change' makes her more skeptical, untrusting, and thinking that she is losing her mind, rather than having something medical and cureable going on. Hindsight is 20/20, and it has really been useful to go back and talk it over with her. She usually can't believe what happened, like she was asleep for that period of time or like she was seeing it thru some really different glasses.

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Bodhi @ 03:09 AM March 18, 2008

Bodhi — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 03:09:56 -0000

It sure is interesting how the body reacts to all these changes as we get older.

Thanks for the link Stephanie - that's a great reference link.

Now that I think about it, my Mom complained about the disorientation that would last for weeks after having anesthesia for surgury....

It's like what the body and mind can cope with just starts to shrink.

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Stephanie Trelogan @ 12:26 AM March 18, 2008

Stephanie Trelogan — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:26:06 -0000

Hi Bodhi,

What you're describing is pretty common in older people. It's called delirium, and can be triggered by infections, electrolyte balance disturbances...or even just being hospitalized. My grandmother became delirious every single time she went into the hospital: she became very paranoid, heard voices, and had to be restrained so she wouldn't hurt herself. It was very alarming!

But once the underlying cause is treated, people usually go right back to being their normal selves. It's incredible, that mind-body connection, isn't it?

If you'd like to read more, check out this link:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000740.htm

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Missy @ 12:58 AM March 14, 2008

Missy — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:58:37 -0000

Hey Bodhi!

I don't have an explanation as to why this happens, but it did most definitely happen to my dad. He also had a very bad UTI and told stories to us how he was hollering to my mom for her to come help him, how he struggled to get out of bed knocking things off the nighstand, etc. Mom never heard anything and the surroundings in the bedroom were untouched. He absolutely did not put those things back.

Once he was treated and started healing, he "came back". This was two years ago and to this day he has no memory problems.

Hope that helps!

Infections causing short-term dementia? posted by Bodhi @ 11:10 PM March 13, 2008

Bodhi — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 23:10:46 -0000

I've had 2 close friends in the last week tell me about their parents suddenly losing their 'sanity' only to discover they had urinary infections and once that was treated they were back to 'normal.'

They thought, 'well, she's finally losing it'...

Anybody else heard of anything like this. It just seemed sort of bizarre to have them both tell me the same story within days of each other.

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