[Guest]

My grandfather (who just turned 90) has been having funny beliefs for the last few years.

He gets confused about what has happened when in his life. For example, he claims to have a car, even though he sold the car years ago.

That much seems pretty normal for a 90 year old. What is more interesting to me is that if confronted with the fact that he sold his car he'll assert "I bought another one". It's like he's sure of his belief about the car, and so he then has to try to figure out some way to integrate that with reality. If I sold my car, then I must have another, since I'm *sure* I have a car.

He will imagine a situation, and he then gets confused about its reality. Over Christmas he had trouble with some stairs, and imagined that in a fire it could be dangerous. Later, he told us that the firemen had been angry with him on the stairs.

Recently he has begun to state that he has a horse in his building. He speaks of wanting to go and visit the horse. Needless to say, there are no horses where he lives.

He seems to be in pretty good shape apart from this. He can watch TV, make comments about good plays in a basketball game, and he paints. His short-term memory is not very good, but most of the judgements he makes are quite rational.

How can a person who is able to be rational at the same time believe in his horse, and his car, and hold onto those beliefs so tenaciously?

Should we try to talk him out of his beliefs, or indulge them (how's your horse grampa?)

I've heard about reduplicative paramnesia, is this possibly something that my grandfather is experiencing? Is this is a true dementia?

[Guest]

What youa re seeing is not uncommon, in htat an individual may seemingly be conversive, bright, rational at times, but also show episodic periods or hold beliefs about things that make no sense. Interesting syndromes of confabulation and other phenomena-Capgrass syndrome, reduplicative amnesia etc are seen in a variety of settings. You might have to decide in each situation what your correct resposne is, as in some instances he might become upset of angry if he is disagreed with. Certainly if safety is an issue, your decisions should rule.
[quote] My grandfather (who just turned 90) has been having funny beliefs for the last few years.

He gets confused about what has happened when in his life... [/quote]