Early Onset Dementia – What Is It?

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe the symptoms that pertain to a large number of illnesses that could cause for eventual progressive decline in the mental functioning of a person. It is a broad term that is used to describe the loss of intellect, memory, social skills, rationality and the normal emotional reactions that a person is capable of.

What is Early Onset Dementia?

The term early onset dementia has been used to describe any form of dementia that is known to affect people below the age of 65 (which is generally said to be the age when dementia is said to averagely take over).

The term early onset dementia or younger onset dementia is said to cover the range of illnesses that would affect a person’s thinking and memory; and these will affect only people below the age of 65. This particular group of people might actually possess important social and medical needs that haven’t really always been met in the past. Although most cases of dementia will end up affecting people who are elderly, there have been the occasional off cases where people who are younger have also been diagnosed with dementia. Dementia has often been known to affect people who are in their 40s and 50s, and sometimes even as young as their 30s. When dementia affects younger people, it will definitely be a lot less common as compared to the form of dementia that affects people over the age of 65. It is for this exact reason that younger onset dementia becomes difficult to diagnose; and this is the main reason why its exact incidence among our worldwide community is tough to understand.

Early onset dementia symptoms:

Early onset dementia is not always easy to diagnose or spot. Here are some of the symptoms that could wave the red flag for this condition –

• Decline in memory
• Decline in problem solving capabilities
• Decline in learning

In most cases, this form of dementia will be characterized by –

• Short term memory loss
• Inability to complete everyday tasks that may be relatively simple to achieve
• Challenges with basic language and communication
• Social withdrawal
• Problems with following simple instructions or directions
• Confusion
• Paranoia
• Impaired judgment

Simply put, this should help you make out the difference between being forgetful and having dementia –

If you forget where you placed your glasses, you may be plain forgetful. However, if you forget that you need to wear glasses; chances are that it could be an indication of dementia. As long as your memory loss doesn’t interfere with your normal day to day activities, it will probably not have much to do with the possibility of dementia.

According to some experts, this form of dementia is said to progress much more rapidly. However, the cynics argue that this disease is said to just appear as though it is advancing faster in those who suffer from younger onset dementia because the people in question being affected are younger; and hence, healthier. This makes the deterioration seem stark and noticeable.