Alzheimers...any experts...particularly medical folks

[Reffc]

Brian,

I am sorry to hear this. I am going through the exact same thing with both of my parents, one of whom my wife and I act as full time carers, the other is in care due to other medical needs but is visited regularly by us.

We have been down the exact same road and I am happy to discuss things with you if that would be any help.


Having re-read your post, there are a few observations which raise one or two alarm bells about the diagnosis and treatment:

Alzheimers itself is a progressive disease and not subject to sudden down-turns. It is caused by clumping of proteins in the brain over time which shut off neural pathways, disabling certain brain function and memory recall, particularly shorter term, but depends where it forms. Dementia takes several forms (vascular, DLB, mixed, Parkinsons etc). Vascular dementia is usually the result of repeated TIAs or strokes and the effects can be reversible provided that Alzheimers isn't too advanced. Sudden worsening of the condition is usually a sign of several things:

Stroke: easily diagnosed

DLB or other form of dementia which can worsen in steps rather than a gradual worsening. Usually CT scans combined with blood tests and carefully designed memory and logic tests combined are used to form a diagnosis and prognosis.

Urine infection: This can and often does give symptoms of increased anxiety and confusion and is easily diagnosed and treated following a blood test.

I am concerned that without these steps, your father has been prescribed anti-depressants. It may be a quick fix for the clinicians, but the side effects need bearing in mind and they can of course cause more problems than they help with. Sodium Valporate used for the treatment of Epilepsy is sometimes prescribed to Alzheimers sufferers to ease anxiety and it is very effective and safe. It is a better alternative in most cases that than anti-depressants. We have discussed this in some detail with my father's Alzheimers specialists. It is normally prescribed in combination with a drug called Memantine Hydrochloride, used as a more effective drug to slow Alzheimers when Donpizel or Aricept no longer work well. Memantine is often started at a 5mg dose and worked up with a doubling of the dose every few weeks until a change for the better (a levelling of the condition) is noticed, up to 20mg/day.

Ultimately, with my Dad, we had little choice to house him in s specialist care home with nursing care due to the post operative effects of cancer operations as my Mum couldn't cope any more, and now, the world being the cruel place that it is, she also has the condition, so I do empathise with you. It is not easy and is soul destroying to see those you love with this terrible illness. If I can be of any help, please just contact me.

Please call me (my best contact numbers are given on my website). I will be glad to assist in any way that I can be of help to you.

[jandl100]

No advice to give as I thankfully have had no nearest and dearest yet affected.
But you certainly have my concerned best wishes.

-- actually, the one piece of general advice I would give is, as has been said already, do challenge the medics if you are unhappy with what is going on. They aren't perfect, and some are considerably less than that, sadly.

Good luck.