What is the difference between dementia and Alzheimer's? How can I tell if my mother has Alzheimer's or dementia? I just know she's forgetting more and more.
Expert Answer by Paula Spencer
Dementia is not a disease per se; it's a set of symptoms that affect daily functioning (such as memory loss and changes in abstract reasoning and attention) caused by deterioration in the brain. Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia. Sometimes the two terms are used interchangeably, often by those who find "Alzheimer's" to be a stigmatizing word. But technically they are not the same thing. Dementia is the broader, umbrella term; there are many different causes of dementia (disorders that feature dementia): vascular dementia; Parkinson's Disease dementia; Lewy Body Dementia; frontotemporal dementia. Alzheimer's is just one type of dementia. Dementia can also feature in other brain disorders such as Huntington's Disease and AIDS.
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Jon, 3 of my Grandparents have been diagnosed with both Dementia and Alzheimer's. And ultimately, there's very little noticeable difference to the family. It really doesn't matter if your mother has one or the other. My suggestion is this...get a digital voice recorder and start recording your mother's memories. We did this with all three grandparents, but at different levels, and we're thrilled that we have all the information that we do. Two of the 3 have passed, but lived with Alzheimer's for 8 and 12 years. If we hadn't recorded their memories when we did, we'd have lost everything. Enablemart.com has a great one that we used. Check it out. And I hope your mother does well.
http://www.enablemart.com/Catalog/Voice-Recognition/Sony-ICD-Series-Digital-Recorders
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