Hello,
None of your mother's symptoms or findings is normal. Leg swelling can be caused by various disorders including
venous insufficiency,
heart failure,
nephrotic syndrome, liver
cirrhosis, endocrine disorders, etc.
Persistent and reproducible forgetfulness is usually the presenting symptom of dementia. A
neurologist should be able to do a proper assessment with appropriate tests and a CT or MRI scan of the brain.
Certain disorders may cause (or worsen) symptoms that resemble dementia. For example, serious anemia or electrolyte disorders, infections etc may cause the brain to malfunction. Her doctor should exclude other disorders before diagnosing dementia particularly if she presented with these symptoms all of a sudden.
So in conclusion, what happened to your mother is not normal. She requires assessment by a doctor, but the most likely diagnosis is dementia.
Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.
Regards,
Dr. Panagiotis Zografakis,
Internal Medicine Specialist