COGNITIVE DISORDERS

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COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT DISORDERS

·         Delirium
- it can occur as a result of either an acute or a chronic brain condition. There are four general organic causes of delirium –
§  Brain disease (an infection or tumor)
§  A disease or infection in another part of the body that affects the brain e.g metabolic condition.
§  Intoxication e.g. with alcohol
§  Withdrawal from substance to which an individual is addicted
o   Behavior: overactive and agitated; underactive and drowsy either of these behavior can occur and fluctuate. Incoherent, mumbling speech, severely disoriented.
o   Mood: anxious irritable, depressed. These moods vary often.
o   Thought: thinking is muddled and slow, the person seems perplexed. Delusions might be present, memory retention and recall impaired.
o   Perception: visual illusions, misinterpretations and hallucinations.
·         Dementia
The essential feature of dementia or brain deterioration is a gradual loss of intellectual abilities that is sufficient to interfere with social or occupational functioning.
o   Memory impairment  - inability to learn new information and to recall previously learned information
o   One or more of the following cognitive disturbances:
§  Deterioration of language – speech becomes vague or empty comprehension of spoken or written language may deteriorate.
§  Impaired ability to execute motor activities despite intact motor function, sensory function and comprehension of the required task e.g. impaired ability to pantomime using an object such as combing hair.
§  Failure to recognize or identify objects despite intact sensory function e.g. loss of the ability to recognize objects such as chairs or pencils despite normal visual acuity.
§  Disturbance in executive functions such as planning, organizing, sequencing and abstracting- executive dysfunction includes inability to recite the alphabet or state as many animals as possible in 1 minute.
o   Alzheimer’s diseases
§  Depression
§  Hostility, belligerence and aggression
§  Disorientation
§  Wandering
§  Anxiety and suspiciousness.

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