Chapter 5: Confusion, dementia, and Alzheimers disease

Delirium

A state of severe confusion that occurs suddenly and is usually temporary.

Cognition

The ability to think clearly and logically.

Cognitive impairment

The loss of the ability to think clearly and logically.

Dementia

The serious loss of mental abilities including thinking, remembering, reasoning, and communicating.

Causes of dementia

Alzheimer's disease, multi-infarct or vascular dementia, Lewy Body disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease.

Alzheimer's disease

A progressive, incurable disease that causes tangled nerve fibers and protein deposits to form in the brain, usually leading to dementia.

Perseveration

The repeating of words, phrases, questions, or actions.

Sundowning

Becoming restless or agitated in the late afternoon, evening, or night.

Catastrophic reaction

Reacting in an unreasonable or exaggerated way.

Elope

When a person with Alzheimer's wanders away from a protected area and does not return.

Hallucinations

False or disoriented sensory perceptions.

Delusions

Persistent false beliefs.