Diagnostic and therapeutic approach to a patient with cognitive impairment

Abstract

Dementia is a clinical syndrome which manifests in a decline in one or more cognitive domains (learning, memory, language, egsecutive function, attention, perceptive, motor and social cognition) that affects patients rutine daily activities. Demographic ageing is a worldwide process that shows the successes of improved health care over the last century, and because dementia mainlly occurs in people older than 65 and it begins to reach pandemic proportions. Eventhough it occurs mainly in older people, it is not associated with normal ageing. The impact of dementia on carers, family and societies can be physical, psychological, social and economic. In 2015 around 40 million people had dementia, there are around 10 million new cases every year implying one new case every 3.2 seconds. Alzheimers dementia accounts for 60-80% of all dementia. According to Alzheimer Disease International projections in 2050 there will be almost three times more people with dementia (110 million) in comparison to 2015. It is important to raise awareness about the epidemic potential of dementia cases in the future, it's impact on society and ways to early recognize, diagnose and treat dementia.