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  2. Does My Mother have Alzheimer's

Could my mother have Alzheimer's, rather than dementia?

A fellow caregiver asked...

Regarding symptoms of dementia if new situations seem to stimulate a more "connected" response rather than confusion could that indicate that mom's symptoms could be related to something else rather than Alzheimers? Mom had a stroke 7 years ago. She recovered pretty well from the stroke but has really been going downhill rapidly lately. Confusion, inability to use words that even make sense, doesn't seem to understand what we are saying. Losing ability to self-dress and self-toilet. We've had her evaluated and they say "dementia" but haven't said Alzheimers specifically.

Expert Answer

Paula Spencer Scott is the author of Surviving Alzheimer's. A Met Life Foundation Journalists in Aging fellow, she writes extensively about health and caregiving; four of her family members have had dementia.

When the doctors say your mother has dementia, they are referring to her symptoms. Dementia is not a disease but a set of symptoms including memory loss, changes in attention and abstract reasoning, and so on. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, but it's not the only one. Vascular dementia, for example, is caused by small strokes in the brain. It can be difficult to pinpoint the cause of dementia without a complete medical workup. Ask your mother's doctors what they think the cause of her sudden decline might be.