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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Short Term Memory Loss In An Elderly Person?

My dad is 80. He, over the last year, is exhibiting short-term memory loss, some days, confusion, and in the last month, has lost about 15 lbs. I took him to his MD one week ago to address our concerns. The doctor didn t seem overly concerned about the things we presented with. My dad is on a variety of prescriptions. I do not have a current list. But, he takes warfarin. His heart goes into afib about once a month or so, sometimes more, and is out of rhythm for an average of 10 to 20 hours. He also is supposed to take Lexapro, but he is not consistent and thinks he doesn t need to take it. At his last appt, the doctor asked him to please take the Lexapro once a day, every day as directed, then come back in 6 weeks to see if he still has problems. I m searching for other answers. I m concerned at his weight loss, his dramatic mood swings, and more frequent confusion. I am wondering if he is having mini strokes, but he had a CT scan on Friday because we took him to the ER after he fell at home and split his eyebrow open. CT scan was reported to be normal. I understand that any stroke he may have had would show up on a CT scan. Is that true?
Wed, 3 Jul 2019
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General & Family Physician 's  Response
Hello,

From your description, I am of the opinion that it is age-related dementia. As you have not provided the prescriptions it will be unwise for me to suggest any drugs as they may have potential interaction.

But yeah you should focus on Nootropic agents in consultation with your doctor. CT scan won't give any exact picture as much as an MRI would give.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Take care

Regards,
Dr Ashish Ranjan, General & Family Physician
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What Causes Short Term Memory Loss In An Elderly Person?

Hello, From your description, I am of the opinion that it is age-related dementia. As you have not provided the prescriptions it will be unwise for me to suggest any drugs as they may have potential interaction. But yeah you should focus on Nootropic agents in consultation with your doctor. CT scan won t give any exact picture as much as an MRI would give. Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further. Take care Regards, Dr Ashish Ranjan, General & Family Physician