[Guest]

my mother is 61 years old. I recently took her to UVA for assessment/diagnosis
and all immediate life threatening illnesses were ruled out, and she left with the simple diagnosis of dementia....... She has been on Exelon for about a year and Xanex, with no major changes....... She has aged about 30 years in 3; she cannot walk or get dressed by herself, nor can she keep up a conversation. She knows something is wrong but blames everyone else. Her left extremities are impacted the most, but stroke has been ruled out. Her memory is excellent. She goes into rages and throws things, curses and does things completely out of character. My father and I don't know what to do or where to turn, please advise.

[Guest]

It sounds like a very difficult situation. Hopefully she has a neurologist and psychiatrist who you are seeing, as there are medications that might be more helpful for her erratic behavior. You might consider attending support groups of family members with dementia, and seeing a specialist in behavior neurologist in your area.
[quote] my mother is 61 years old. I recently took her to UVA for assessment/diagnosis
and all immediate life threatening illnesses were ruled out, and she left with the simple diagnosis of dementia... [/quote]

[Guest]

My mother is 63 yrs old, history of hypertension, tachacardia, and panic attacks. Recently, (w/in past 5 years) dx. as diabetic. Always had poor hand eye coordination, now cannot use a knife, or write a check. Preliminary dx. of Diffuse Cortial Lewey Disease. No indication of stroke on CT the Dr. has oredered many more studies. I'm unable to find information on this illness, can you recommend resources ?
Thank you.
[quote] It sounds like a very difficult situation. Hopefully she has a neurologist and psychiatrist who you are seeing, as there are medications that might be more helpful for her erratic behavior... [/quote]

[Guest]

You might want to look up "Lewy BodY Dementia", which is a type of cortical dementia that has some similarities to Alzheimers disease, but clinically and pathologically some differences exist. Patients may have a waxing and waning curse, visual hallucination,s and some symptoms taht may be seen in Parkinsonian syndromes as well (stiffness, tremor, , gait problems).
[quote] My mother is 63 yrs old, history of hypertension, tachacardia, and panic attacks. Recently, (w/in past 5 years) dx... [/quote]