Dementia Syndromes

Definition: Dementia is an umbrella term that refers to a group of neurodegenerative syndromes characterised by abnormal changes in the brain. These syndromes, or forms of dementia, each have unique symptoms. The most common syndrome is Alzheimer’s disease, which is characterised by memory loss and changes in everyday functioning. Other types of dementia include vascular dementia, Lewy Body Dementia and frontotemporal dementia. Although the term ‘dementia’ is commonly used to describe brain changes in old age, a clinical diagnosis will often involve diagnosing a specific dementia syndrome based on the person’s symptoms. 

Metaphor: We can think of ‘dementia’ as a library, with each section representing a different dementia syndrome. The biggest section in the library, and the one that affects the most people, is literature, which might belong to Alzheimer’s disease. On the other hand, more niche sections, like the travel section, might belong to frontotemporal dementia, which affects a much smaller percentage of the overall dementia population. Each library section is made up of a unique set of books. Similarly, each dementia syndrome is characterised by a unique set of symptoms. For example, Alzheimer’s disease is characterised by memory loss and disorientation, whereas our Frontotemporal section may be made up of personality changes and changes in social cognition. Finally, each form of dementia is characterised by a different pattern of neurodegeneration, which means that how the brain changes or degenerates differs from syndrome to syndrome. In our library, you can think of this as each section having a different ordering system. We might order our classics by author,  but our travel books by region. Understanding dementia syndromes as sections of a library highlights the diverse range of dementia syndromes and complex syndromes and neuropathologies underlying them.