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About Mixed Dementia
Mixed dementia is a condition in which Alzheimer's disease
and vascular dementia occur at the same time. Many experts
believe mixed dementia occurs more often than was previously
realized and that it becomes increasingly common in advanced
age. This belief is based on brain autopsies showing up to
45 percent of people with dementia have signs of both Alzheimer's
and vascular disease.
The concept of mixed dementia is clinically important because
the combination of the two diseases may have a greater impact
on the brain than either by itself.
Symptoms
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May follow a pattern similar to either Alzheimer’s
or vascular dementia or a combination of the two.
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Some experts recommend suspecting mixed dementia whenever
a person has both evidence of cardiovascular disease and
dementia symptoms that get worse slowly.
Treatment
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As with vascular dementia, lifelong attention to risk
factors and overall health of the heart and blood vessels
could play a key role in preventing mixed dementia. These
measures might also help delay or prevent progression
of symptoms in older adults.
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Since most of the drugs approved to treat Alzheimer’s
disease have also shown a similar benefit in treating
vascular dementia, there is reason to believe they may
also be of some help in mixed dementia. Two of the drugs
galantamine (Razadyne) and rivastigmine (Exelon) have
been tested and shown to offer modest benefit specifically
in mixed dementia.
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No drugs are currently approved by the FDA to treat mixed
dementia.
Vision statement
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