Hello,
And welcome to episode 11 of my series of tiny talks about dementia and cognition.
And today I will talk about normal ageing,
MCI and dementia.
Dementia is on many people's minds,
Especially as we get older.
Many of us start to notice changes in their brains,
And may develop a worry that they are in the early stages of dementia.
In many cultures dementia is seen as a normal part of ageing.
However it is not inevitable.
Let's look at some characteristics of forgetfulness following from normal ageing in comparison with MCI and dementia.
As we age,
Many bodily functions change over time.
This includes our brain capacity and functioning.
You may also notice fluctuations over time that are related to feelings of stress or for example sleep deprivation.
Many people feel that as they grow older it becomes progressively more difficult to learn new things.
It just seems to take longer.
People may displace objects and then be unable to locate them,
Or it may be harder to remember other people's names.
This may be related to reduced brain plasticity.
If you have for decades followed the same routines,
For example because of work or your role in your family,
Your brain gets somewhat rusty.
If the symptoms become a bit more severe than those described above,
You may have developed MCI,
Or mild cognitive impairment.
This may be a transition stage between normal ageing and developing.
However not everyone who has MCI goes on to develop dementia.
It is only about 10-20% of those aged 65 and older.
Some people in this stage may just stay in this stage,
And others may improve.
With MCI,
The brain may be affected in one of the following areas,
Memory,
Language,
Thinking or judgment.
MCI turns into mild dementia when more than one of these areas is affected.
As an illustration,
Following from my tiny talk about brain plasticity,
Where the brain is described as a sophisticated network of roads,
Neural pathways and traffic,
Neural messages.
In this metaphor,
Normal ageing is exactly that,
All roads are ageing over time.
Some roads are used less and less,
Some are congested,
And maintenance is not completely keeping up with the natural erosion.
In MCI,
One branch of the roads has become congested or has crumbled,
And one function is becoming impaired.
With dementia,
Multiple roads and areas are affected,
And it becomes increasingly harder to construct new roads or access others.
