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What Causes Memory Loss, Forgetfulness And Irritability?
Question: I am very concerned for my 80 y/o mother, she is becoming very forgettable and irritable when she is misunderstood, don't get me wrong she still works as a cashier at Walmart and they say she does wonderful and never messes up her register, where its most concerning is when talking to her she about things she knows and she has no clue, she gets upset when she talks and people don't understand whet she is coming with, very forgetful one moment and the next she remembers, could it be dementia vs Alzheimer's disease vs Korsakoff Syndrome I cannot get my mom to go to the doctor and along with all this her legs are very swollen and she has difficulty walking but than she can also get around with the best of us, so is there any home remedy or testing that I can do to figure this out correctly before its to late, I have two sisters but no help just my husband and myself and dad. Could it help if I had her taking Thiamine. I hope you can help me with something, dispirit and very concerned.
Brief Answer:
No memory problems possibly - tests can be done to evaluate
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Thanks for asking.
I am Dr. Prakash HM and I will be answering your query.
Based on your query, my opinion is as follows:
1. She could be having mild cognitive impairment. It could be a very early stage of Alzheimers disease. However, if she is able to remember later, without any help, she does not have impairment too.
2. Alzheimers disease requires other cognitive disturbances like difficulty to form sentences, inability to carry out motor activities or failure to recognize objects or difficulty in planning and organizing. She does not have any of these.
3. If you need to check her memory, you can do a clock draw test - draw a clock face with hands set at a designated time and a 3 item recall - Give her 3 item names and ask her to recall immediately and after 5 minutes. If she is able to do both, then she has no memory problems.
4. Regarding Korsakoff syndrome - she has no associated encephalopathy symptoms (she might be abusing alcohol). Starting on thiamine can be done, if other nutritional deficiencies are present like anemia or dryness of skin.
5. Swollen legs could be due to prolonged standing position. Check for any prominent veins and blood pressure. If veins are not present and blood pressure is normal, then limb elevation in lying down position with 2-3 pillows below legs, so that the legs is above heart level should reduce it. Overnight this position maintenance along with reduced standing position should help. If necessary, leg stockings can be used. Hope there are no wounds in the swollen legs.
6. Irritable, when misunderstood is a normal reaction. Reacting without reason is a serious issue.
Except for swollen leg, I do not think, she has any other issues. However, do get the tests done.
Hope it helps.
Any further queries, here to help again.
Dr. Prakash HM
No memory problems possibly - tests can be done to evaluate
Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Thanks for asking.
I am Dr. Prakash HM and I will be answering your query.
Based on your query, my opinion is as follows:
1. She could be having mild cognitive impairment. It could be a very early stage of Alzheimers disease. However, if she is able to remember later, without any help, she does not have impairment too.
2. Alzheimers disease requires other cognitive disturbances like difficulty to form sentences, inability to carry out motor activities or failure to recognize objects or difficulty in planning and organizing. She does not have any of these.
3. If you need to check her memory, you can do a clock draw test - draw a clock face with hands set at a designated time and a 3 item recall - Give her 3 item names and ask her to recall immediately and after 5 minutes. If she is able to do both, then she has no memory problems.
4. Regarding Korsakoff syndrome - she has no associated encephalopathy symptoms (she might be abusing alcohol). Starting on thiamine can be done, if other nutritional deficiencies are present like anemia or dryness of skin.
5. Swollen legs could be due to prolonged standing position. Check for any prominent veins and blood pressure. If veins are not present and blood pressure is normal, then limb elevation in lying down position with 2-3 pillows below legs, so that the legs is above heart level should reduce it. Overnight this position maintenance along with reduced standing position should help. If necessary, leg stockings can be used. Hope there are no wounds in the swollen legs.
6. Irritable, when misunderstood is a normal reaction. Reacting without reason is a serious issue.
Except for swollen leg, I do not think, she has any other issues. However, do get the tests done.
Hope it helps.
Any further queries, here to help again.
Dr. Prakash HM
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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