It’s not always Alzheimer’s disease

Not everyone who has dementia has Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of irreversible dementia, but there are actually more than 100 different kinds of dementia.

Many irreversible dementias share common traits, such as memory loss, but the initial presenting symptoms of the dementias may be different.

Learn more about three other forms of irreversible dementia:

Dementia with Lewy Bodies

• Tends to share symptoms with Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease
• May look similar to Parkinson’s disease in terms of movement
• Initial presenting symptoms may include frequent falls, sleep disturbances and visual hallucinations
• Cognitive fluctuations that are delirium-like

Frontotemporal dementia

• Marked more by behavioral changes than by cognitive impairment
• Symptoms related to the frontal lobe may include personality changes, loss of impulse control and inability to control behavior
• Problems with speech, such as being unable to get words out or understanding what is said
• Symptoms tend to develop between ages 40 and 65
• Tends to progress faster than Alzheimer’s disease

Vascular dementia

• Is a decline in thinking skills
• Symptoms may be most obvious after a major stroke
• Damage is related to inadequate blood supply
• Symptoms may include impaired judgment and declining ability to pay attention
• Changes can come on suddenly, or come as a gradual loss of function or thinking