Dementias are diseases that lead to a progressive loss of cognitive, emotional and social abilities. The main areas affected are short-term memory, the ability to think, language and orientation, and in the case of some forms, often the personality structure as well.
This makes dementia a serious burden not only for the sufferers themselves, but especially for their families and their entire social environment. Care begins with careful testing of higher brain performance and the search for treatable causes. For example, some patients can have their cognition improved or even restored by liquor puncture (removal of cerebrospinal fluid through a puncture in the back). This disease is known as normal pressure hydrocephalus and has the prospect of being permanently corrected by neurosurgery. Other treatable causes are diseases of the brain vessels. Here, cognitive performance can be improved by optimising blood circulation (adjusting blood pressure, blood sugar and blood lipids, exercise, possibly a vascular operation). More possible causes of dementia are diseases of internal organs (liver, kidneys) or the intake of the wrong medication.
In the most common form of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, there is premature breakdown of nerve cells due to neurodegeneration. Despite all the progress made in medicine, there is still no cure for Alzheimer's disease. Nevertheless, the course of the disease can be influenced favourably by medication and mental and physical activities. An essential part of counselling at an advanced stage is the organisation of necessary assistance and counselling for family members. For this purpose we are at your disposal with an interdisciplinary team of doctors, nurses, therapists and social workers.