Mild Cognitive Impairment ( MCI )
Mild Cognitive Impairment ( MCI ) is a term used to describe people who have some problems with their memory but do not actually have dementia. It is estimated that 15% of the population may be experiencing MCI.
It is not a specific medical condition, but a form of memory loss that may affect a person’s score on neuropsychological tests.
MCI can occur as a result of stress, depression, anxiety or physical illness.
It is important to identify people with MCI, as they are at increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
However, many people with MCI get better without any treatment, and some never get any worse.
Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia.
In the early stages, people may experience lapses of memory and word finding problems.
As the disease progresses, people may become confused and disorientated for time and places. They may experience mood swings and feel frustrated by their memory difficulties. They may also become more withdrawn.
Age is the greatest risk factor for dementia.
Dementia affects 1 in 20 over the age of 65 and 1 in 5 over the age of 80. There are 17,000 people under the age of 65 with dementia in the UK.
Early diagnosis is important and enables you to:
- Plan for the future
- Benefit from the treatments that are now available
- Identify sources of advice and support.
Vascular Dementia
This is the second most common form of dementia.
It is caused by very small strokes occurring in the brain. The mental decline is likely to have a clear start date and symptoms tend to progress in a series of steps.
These may include depression, mood swings and epilepsy.
Some areas of the brain may be more affected than others and hence some mental abilities may be relatively unaffected.
A brain scan can usually help us distinguish between Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. However sometimes it can be difficult to distinguish between the two and it is possible for people to have both conditions.
Other Memory Problems
There are many other causes of memory problems.
Some are due to physical causes such as anaemia or an under active thyroid. Depression may also affect your memory.
Many every day stresses can cause memory problems. During relationship difficulties, bereavements or stresses at work you may notice your memory doesn’t function as well as usual. This normally resolves when the stress goes away.
