Mary drove her car to a large mall one day, and when she was finished shopping she forgot where she had parked her car. It took her 20 minutes to find it again. She was embarrassed and frustrated.

John drove his car to a large mall one day, and when he was finished shopping he took the bus home because he forgot that he had driven his car. When his wife asked where the car was, John said he had no idea.

These two people have memory impairment, but one of them, John, is much more likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia than Mary. If Mary develops consistent memory loss and has no other illness to explain it, her memory problems may become Alzheimer’s dementia. This occurs about one-third of the time (American Journal of Psychiatry: April 1999, 156: 531). Many people worry about Alzheimer’s dementia if they have episodes of losing or misplacing objects, forgetting the day or date, starting but not finishing tasks, or trouble remembering recent events. Most of the time these problems don’t last long. Most will not be diagnosed as Alzheimer’s dementia. Only one person in ten over age 65 and about 30% at age 85 have the illness.

How will I know if what I have is Alzheimer’s dementia or a response related to some other medical or emotional problem?

The Alzheimer’s Association lists 10 warning signs of Alzheimer’s dementia:

1. Forgetting recently learned information.
2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks.
3. Forgetting simple words or substituting unusual words.
4. Forgetting where you are in familiar surroundings.
5. Poor judgment--wearing summer clothes in winter, for example.
6. Poor abstract thinking--forgetting what the numbers in the checkbook are and what is to be done with them.
7. Misplacing objects in unusual places, such as putting books in the refrigerator.
8. Rapid mood swings or intense moodiness.
9. Changes in personality--suspicious or fearless.
10. Passivity--no longer interested in activities.

There may be times when each of us has experienced some of the signs listed above. For example, if people are depressed and grieving or very stressed and anxious, they don’t concentrate well. They become forgetful and may be passive, or use poor judgment, and have difficulty performing familiar tasks. Generally, they don’t have rapid mood swings or changes in personality that are a part of Alzheimer’s dementia. It is important to know that more than half of those with early Alzheimer’s dementia are diagnosed with depression as well.

Alzheimer’s dementia is just one type of dementia. Dementia is a term used to describe a number of brain disorders which lead to a decline in mental functioning, especially memory. This decline worsens over time. Repeated strokes may cause another kind of dementia called multi-infarct dementia. There are other medical conditions that lead to dementia such as poor nutrition, brain cancer, ongoing infection, and kidney or liver failure. These can cause several types of dementia at the same time.

The best way to know if someone has Alzheimer’s dementia or another disease is to have a complete health assessment. Local physicians, especially ones who serve a large older population, can do this if you tell them that you are worried about Alzheimer’s dementia. You can also ask for a referral to a geriatric clinic that specializes in this kind of assessment. There is one located at the University of Washington in Seattle, phone number 1-800-317-5382. There is another clinic in Tacoma at Good Samaritan Hospital, phone number 1-253-848-5571.

More information about Alzheimer’s dementia is available from Senior Information and Assistance at 360-496-3230 or from Helpline at 1-800-848-7097. Information can be obtained on-line from the Alzheimer’s Association. Both the Washington and national sites are excellent sources of information. Check these website addresses: www.alzwa.org and www.alz.org or www.alzheimers.org.