Except from “Elder Interventions: A Guide To Caring For The Elderly With Behavior And Emotional Problems.“
A confused older man was brought to the emergency room by his family. Diagnosed as having dementia, he was placed in a holding area and died hours later because of severe hypertension which was the real cause of this man’s confusion. A 77-year-old woman, who, according to her family, sits all day and does nothing but stare at the television is called senile by her family. She is actually depressed and contemplating suicide. A once sharp 80-year-old man had been diagnosed with dementia a year earlier by his family physician, because he had a poor memory and a CAT scan that was indicative of Alzheimer’s. No one noticed that his problems really began after he started taking an over-the-counter sleeping medication. He died recently because of an accidental drug overdose of this same medication.
The common thread in the above stories is that these persons were old and presumed to be demented or “senile”. Professionals and lay persons alike routinely and unwittingly dispense a life sentence of misery, or worse, death to these older individuals.
These misjudgments are the result of a common misperception which I call the “The Deadly Myth of Aging”. As a result millions of people live a life far different from the concept of the golden years. Many of these people prematurely die and we, as a society, are doing very little to stop this tragedy.
The diagnosis of dementia is essentially a chronic death sentence. Our society sees this malady as the beginning of the end for all older folks. However, dementia is significantly over diagnosed. For example, there are millions of depressed older persons, some of whom have a condition called “pseudodementia”. These people appear to be demented, however, they are actually depressed and with appropriate treatment their dementia can be reversed.
Other conditions that resemble Alzheimer’s disease include delirium which can mimic dementia. These persons become confused as a result of misusing medications or as a result of some medical condition. Most of these conditions can be reversed with proper medical treatment and the dementia-like syndrome disappears. If the delirium-causing medical condition is not properly treated, these individuals may die as a result. Before a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s is made your loved one must receive a comprehensive evaluation to rule out other treatable illnesses.
Read more from “Elder Interventions: A Guide To Caring For The Elderly With Behavior And Emotional Problems” by purchasing the book here: https://www.amazon.com/Elder-Interventions-Emotional-Behavioral-Problems/dp/1420882120
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