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Treatment for early DEMENTIA/ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE.

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I am trying to figure out how to best help my mother. She is 74 years old patientold and starting to show signs of early dementia. She is having trouble remembering recent conversations and events. She has good days and bad days. I am noticing her difficulty in remembering "weekend plans" (she asks the same questions over and over) and she definitely repeats herself a lot in conversations.

My question: are there any medications or treatment options that can help slow the progression of dementia/Alzheimer's? Or will I just be told that "this is a normal part of aging for some so deal with it" like they told me about my material grandmother in the late 90s/early 2000s.

Category: Neurologist, Medical

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Dr. Sudhir Kumar
Category: Pediatric Neurologist
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Expert:  Dr. Sudhir Kumar
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Hello.
Thank you for posting your query at DoctorSpring.com
I have noted your mother's symptoms, and agree with you that she has features of early dementia. This needs to be confirmed with formal neurological and neuro-psychological testing.
Then, she would need a work up to find out if she has any 'treatable' causes of dementia, such as vitamin B12 deficiency, thyroid hormone deficiency, infarcts in brain (due to reduced blood supply to brain), etc. If she has any one of them, she can be treated for that.
On the other hand, if she has no treatable causes and it is due to early Alzheimer's disease (AD), then, we can not offer her a cure. However, the disease progression may be slowed with medications such as memantine, donepezil and rivastigmine.
I hope it helps.

Feel free to discuss further,
Dr. Sudhir Kumar MD (Medicine), DM (Neurology)
Senior Consultant Neurologist

Dr. Sudhir Kumar
Category: Pediatric Neurologist
Experience: 
Senior Residency, Fellowship: DM, Neurology, CMC, Vellore, 2001
Junior Residency: MD, Internal Medicine, CMC, Vellore, 1998
Medical School: MBBS, Christian Medical College, Vellore, 1995
Dr. Sudhir Kumar and 4 other Medical Specialists are ready to help you

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