Dementia with Lewy bodies

What is dementia with Lewy bodies?

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a progressive degenerative disease of the brain. This degenerative syndrome presents some symptoms present in other diseases and sometimes even overlaps with them. Especially Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease are two common diseases among the elderly. People with MCI suffer from behavioral and memory symptoms characteristic of dementia. These symptoms are similar to those of Parkinson’s disease. Although the mental symptoms of the patient with dementia with Lewy bodies may vary in intensity, the motor symptoms are more mild than during Parkinson’s disease, and patients with DLB often have very real visual hallucinations.

Prognosis of the disease

MCI has a worse prognosis than Alzheimer’s disease, according to the results of a study published in the journal Neurology. The research was conducted on 315 people and was led by researchers from the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri.

This study revealed that the overall survival of patients suffering from dementia with Lewy bodies is 78 years. On the other hand, the life expectancy of Alzheimer’s patients is 84.6 years, with some determinant variants depending on gender and the loss of some functions in daily life such as eating and gait disorders.

The prognosis of MCI has a more severe prognosis than that of Alzheimer’s disease.

Symptoms of dementia with Lewy bodies

Overall, the initial symptoms of MCI are similar to those of Alzheimer’s or vascular dementia and are cognitive (mental) in nature. There is a possibility that some patients may suffer from neuromuscular symptoms typical of Parkinson’s disease. There is a small group of patients in whom the disease begins with simultaneous symptoms of parkinsonism and dementia.

In most patients with MCI, these are the main symptoms:

  • Brief episodes of confusion without apparent cause, in addition to other behavioral or cognitive disturbances.
  • Variation in the onset of cognitive symptoms from moment to moment, hour to hour, even day to day or week to week.
  • Occurrence of visual hallucinations, especially in the early stages of MCI where the patient admits and describes such hallucinations.
  • Occurrence of spontaneous symptoms such as motor disturbances of parkinsonism, called “extrapyramidal” symptoms.
Read Now 👉  Pericarditis

Medical tests for dementia with Lewy bodies

The diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies is complicated by the fact that it not only resembles other types of dementias, but overlaps with Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other diseases that can be very difficult to rule out or exclude. Considering that there is no specific test to diagnose MCI, a wide variety of medical, neurological and neuropsychological tests can be used in order to detect this disease and its possible overlap with other syndromes.

What are the causes of dementia with Lewy bodies?

The causes of DLB have not been elucidated to date, nor have specific risk factors been reported. There are cases of families with several members suffering from this disease, however there does not seem to be a tendency towards hereditary transmission. Future research may yield more information about the causes and risk factors for dementia with Lewy bodies.

Treatments for dementia with Lewy bodies

Due to the severity of the disease, the balance between different medications has to be monitored, because some patients suffer adverse reactions. Tranquilizers such as haloperidol or thioridazine, which are often recommended for Alzheimer’s patients in order to reduce hallucinations. These can cause adverse reactions in patients with MCI and lead to motor symptoms.

What specialist treats it?

The medical professional who treats dementia with Lewy bodies is the psychiatrist. At Top Doctors anyone can search for the specialist that best suits their needs.