Dementia is a disorder associated with brain, which causes loss of mental ability and cognitive functions. It affects an ability of thinking, memory, decision-making, concentration, verbal communication, memory and problem solving. Dementia results from damage in parts of the brain or death of brain cells that are associated with thought process. These changes in the brain may be due to certain diseases or traumatic brain injury. Dementia may also cause behavioral and personality changes, depending on the affected area of the brain. Alzheimer’s disease, one of the forms of dementia, is a degenerative disorder. Vascular dementia is a non-degenerative type disease. Dementia is considered as a normal part of aging and more commonly found in the elderly people. Let’s take an overview of dementia and know about the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of dementia.

Types of Dementia

Dementia is classified into various types on the basis of which part of the brain is affected and the particular features of the disorder. The major types of dementia are cortical dementia, subcortical dementia, progressive dementia, primary dementia and secondary dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. It is considered as cortical, progressive dementia. Vascular dementia results from brain damage due to cerebrovascular or cardiovascular problems. Some other forms of dementia are Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, HIV-associated dementia, Huntington’s disease, dementia pugilistica, corticobasal degeneration and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

Causes of Dementia

Dementia is due to various causes such as different diseases and infections, head injuries, stroke, certain drugs and nutritional deficiencies. All types of dementia result from dysfunction in the brain tissue or cerebral cortex. Some diseases cause damage to the cortex, while others affect the subcortical areas. Some of the major causes of dementia are head injuries, infection such as AIDS, inadequate blood or oxygen supply to the brain, pressure on the brain due to brain tumors, hydrocephalus (fluid accumulation between the brain and brain lining), vitamin deficiency and excessive alcohol intake for a long period.

Symptoms of Dementia

Dementia mainly affects the cognitive abilities of a person. Memory loss is one of the significant signs of dementia. In early dementia, a person may find a difficulty in finding the words. It can be compensated by using the synonyms. A person may forget the names, his work or appointments. It may be difficult for him to perform the familiar tasks such as cooking, driving or household chores. Some other symptoms of early dementia are mood swings, poor judgment, uncharacteristic behavior, confusion and behavior disorders such as paranoia and suspiciousness.

In intermediate dementia, symptoms are found to be worsening. A person is not able to carry out daily activities such as dressing, bathing, feeding, etc. Some other signs are disrupted sleep, increasing confusion, agitation, aggressiveness, hallucinations, poor concentration, poor judgment, abnormal moods such as depression and anxiety. There may be increased risk of falls and accidents because of confusion and poor judgment.

In case of severe dementia, the symptoms become the worst. The person becomes completely dependent on others for daily activities. Due to disability of other movements such as swallowing, there may be increased risk of choking, malnutrition and aspiration. There may be complete short-term or long-term memory loss. Some other complications of severe dementia are problems with bladder control, malnutrition, pressure sores, dehydration, seizures and injuries due to falls or accidents.

Diagnosis of Dementia

Early and accurate diagnosis of dementia is very essential to seek an adequate medical treatment. Patient’s history is very important for a correct diagnosis. Physical examination is done to identify the signs of stroke or other disorders that can cause dementia. It is also done to identify the signs of other diseases such as kidney failure or heart disease. Some other investigations done for the diagnosis are cognitive and neuropsychological tests such as Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), brain scan such as CT scan and MRI scan and electroencephalogram (EEG). Some laboratory investigations such as complete blood count, urinalysis, blood glucose test, cerebrospinal fluid analysis and toxicology screening are performed to diagnose dementia as well as to rule out other conditions that can contribute to dementia.

Treatment for Dementia

The treatment of dementia focuses on improving the symptoms and slowing the progression of the disease. It helps improve the quality of life of the patient. Many adults need ongoing medications for some chronic disorders such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart failure, diabetes and prostate enlargement. Certain medications such as cholinesterase inhibitors can be effectively used to slow the progression of dementia. As depression is common in people suffering from dementia, it can be treated using antidepressants. Therapies such as occupational therapy or physical therapy are found to be effective in treating the people with dementia. These therapies help improve mobility and activities of the patient.

In a nutshell, dementia is a very serious disorder of brain that can affect your entire lifestyle. However, you can prevent it by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which includes having a balanced diet, doing regular exercises, by quitting smoking and overcoming alcoholism.

By Reshma Jirage
Published: 11/27/2008

CNC Process Overview

There are many steps in CNC. This article will lay out the most important steps in the CNC process.

Quick Explanation of the ProcessThis is how I view CNC.  I break it down into simple steps that I can remember.  Now, they all interact, but it is good to keep them in boxes for simplicity sake.  I also like to keep them in a logical, progression type order.  Here they are: Design, CAD, CAM, Control and Machine.

Today you are going on a journey.  You are going to learn about the basics of CNC.  I hope you are as excited as I am about this topic.  I have been using CNC equipment in my home shop for six years now.  The technology gets better and better every year. 

The software gets better every year.  At one time large companies could only afford this technology.  Now there are hundreds of thousands of these machines working in garages like yours and mine.

There are basically five elements to a CNC Project that you need to know:Design – thinking and planning what you want to buildCAD – translating it into the computerCAM – converting it into machine languageControlling – directing your machine’s motionMachining – building the part to specifications

These five elements are really the building blocks to a CNC project.  As you see them above, that is generally the order people associate them in.  For example, you can’t control until you have a design.  You can’t use your CAM software before your CAD software.  One of the main things you need to address is how these elements interact with each other.

Right now this may seem confusing.  Over time, it will seem very basic.  The more you use these elements with one another, the more their order will become second nature.

Ivan is active in CNC Tutorial and CNC Programming. Learn CNC is part of his expertise.