What’s the Difference Between Alzheimer’s and Dementia?
Dementia refers to a group of brain disorders that make it hard to remember, think clearly, make decisions, or even control your emotions. Alzheimer’s disease is one of those disorders, but there are many types and causes of dementia.
Dementia isn’t just about simple memory mishaps such as forgetting someone’s name or where you parked. A person with dementia has a hard time with at least two of the following:
- Memory
- Communication and speech
- Focus and concentration
- Reasoning and judgment
- Visual perception (seeing things that aren’t there or not being able to see a difference in colors or detect movement)
Since some types of dementia share similar symptoms, it can be hard for a doctor to figure out which one you or your loved one has. Be sure to tell them about all symptoms, medication and alcohol use, and previous illnesses to help them make the right diagnosis.
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)
This is the most common type of dementia. About 60%-80% of people who have dementia have Alzheimer’s. It’s a progressive condition, which means it gets worse over time, and it usually affects people over 65. There’s currently no cure for Alzheimer's disease. But some therapies can help people with Alzheimer's disease manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life.
It happens when proteins (called plaques) and fibers (called tangles) build up in your brain, and they block nerve signals and destroy nerve cells. Memory lossmay be mild at first, but symptoms get worse over time.
Common Alzheimer’s symptoms include:
- Trouble remembering names, events, or conversations
- Problems concentrating
- Personality changes, such as not caring about things you used to, mistrust of others, or aggression
- Mood changes
- Depression
- Impaired judgment or decision-making
- Confusion
It gets harder to carry on a conversation or do everyday tasks. A doctor can’t say you have Alzheimer’s with absolute certainty, but there are things they can do to be fairly sure. They include testing your attention, memory, language, and vision, and looking at images of your brain. These images are taken with an MRI machine, which uses powerful magnets and radio waves to make detailed pictures.
Types of Dementia
Vascular dementia. This is the second most common type. About 1 in 10 people with dementia have vascular dementia, which causes progressive damage to the brain due to blood vessel damage or blockages that lead to mini-strokes or brain bleeding. Doctors used to call it multi-infarct or post-stroke dementia.
Unlike Alzheimer’s disease, memory loss isn’t the typical first symptom. Instead, people with vascular dementia can have different signs, depending on the area of the brain that’s affected, such as problems with planning or judgment. The FDA hasn’t approved any drugs to treat this type of dementia, but you can do some things to keep your brain and blood vessels healthy and try to prevent future damage. These include exercising, keeping blood pressure and cholesterol levels under control, and not smoking.
Dementia with Lewy bodies. Lewy bodies are abnormal clumps of a protein called alpha-synuclein. They build up in your cortex, the part of your brain that handles learning and memory.
This type of dementia causes problems with attention and things such as driving early on, as well as sleeping issues, seeing things that aren’t there (hallucinations), and slowed, unbalanced movements, similar to Parkinson’s disease symptoms. Memory loss tends to show up later in the disease.
Mixed dementia. Sometimes, a person has brain changes caused by more than one type of dementia. This is called mixed dementia. For example, you may have blocked or damaged blood vessels in your brain (vascular dementia) and brain plaques and tangles (Alzheimer’s disease) at the same time.
Frontotemporal dementia(FTD). This form of dementia involves the loss of nerve cells in the front and side areas of your brain – behind your forehead and ears. Personality and behavior changes and trouble with language are the main symptoms. Some people also have a hard time with writing and comprehension.
Symptoms usually show up around age 60 – earlier than they usually start with Alzheimer’s disease. Types of frontotemporal dementia include behavioral variant FTD (bvFTD), primary progressive aphasia, Pick's disease, corticobasal degeneration, and progressive supranuclear palsy.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). This rare form of dementia happens when a protein, called a prion, folds into an abnormal shape, and other proteins start to do the same. This damages brain cells and triggers a fast mental decline.
People with CJD also have mood changes, confusion, twitchy or jerky movements, and trouble walking. Sometimes, the disease is passed down through families, but it also can happen for no known reason. One type, called variant CJD (or mad cow disease, also known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy), has spread from cattle to people in certain situations.
Huntington's disease. This is caused by a problem with a gene you get from one of your parents. It affects the central part of your brain – the area that helps you think, move, and show emotion.
Symptoms typically start between ages 30 and 50. Uncontrolled arm, leg, head, face, and upper body movements are the first signs. The brain changes also lead to problems with memory, concentration, judgment, reasoning, and planning. People with Huntington’s disease also have issues with depression, anger, and crankiness. There’s no known cure for it.
Normal pressure hydrocephalus. The Alzheimer’s Association includes this buildup of spinal fluid in the brain as a form of dementia. Symptoms include slowed thinking, problems with decision-making, trouble concentrating, behavior changes, a hard time walking, and loss of bladder control. It typically strikes adults in their 60s or 70s. Surgery to put a shunt in your brain to get rid of extra fluid can help.
Symptoms of Alzheimer’s vs. Other Types of Dementia
Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia share similar symptoms. A person can also have two or more types of dementia at once.
Though each person’s symptoms are unique, one thing all types of dementia, including Alzheimer's, have in common is that their symptoms involve being unable to think, remember things, behave, and function as a person without dementia would. Symptoms of all types of dementia go from mild to severe, too.
Alzheimer’s vs. Dementia Treatment
Neither Alzheimer’s nor most other types of dementia have a cure. Doctors focus on treating symptoms and keeping the disease from getting worse.
Some of the treatments for dementia and Alzheimer’s may overlap. They include:
- Shots can target and remove amyloid plaques (the abnormal proteins that build up and form plaques in your brain in Alzheimer’s).
- Cholinesterase inhibitors can help with memory loss in certain types of dementia and Alzheimer’s.
- Glutamate inhibitors help with learning and memory in both dementia and Alzheimer’s.
- Sleep medications may help with sleep changes.
- Antidepressants can help with depression symptoms.
- Antipsychotic medications may help with behavior changes.
Some types of dementia respond to treatment, depending on what is causing it. Your doctor may recommend:
- Stopping the use of drugs and alcohol
- Treating a B12 deficiency
- Treating hydrocephalus (extra fluid on the brain)
- Getting your blood sugar under control
Takeaways
Dementia affects thinking, memory, behavior, and perception. Alzheimer's is only one form of dementia, although it’s the type that happens most often in people. But there are others, too. Symptoms are similar in all types of dementia, so it can be hard to tell which you or a loved one might be dealing with. See a doctor if you or a loved one is showing symptoms such as forgetfulness, a hard time concentrating or holding a conversation, and sleep problems to get the right diagnosis.
Alzheimer’s vs. Dementia FAQs
What increases your risk of Alzheimer’s?
Many things increase your risk of Alzheimer’s, including being 65 or older, having a parent or sibling with Alzheimer’s, lifestyle factors such as smoking and not being physically and socially active, and health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity.
What is the life expectancy of someone with Alzheimer's?
The life expectancy for someone with Alzheimer’s is 3-11 years and can be up to 20 years in some cases.
Does a person with dementia know they are confused?
A person with dementia may know they’re confused only when their symptoms are mild in the earlier stages of their condition. They’ll likely not know when they are confused in the later stages.
What are some things to never do with your loved one with dementia?
If your loved one has dementia, communicating with them might become difficult. But don’t talk about them or things they might be interested in without including them. Also, don't interrupt them, speak to them harshly, or ask them if they remember something or someone.
