system
Suggest remedy for mental health problem
human
My sister was diagnosed 3 years ago with early onset Alzheimers disease.She is now 53 years old.Our family is concerned she might have been misdiagnosed.We have heard from other people it might be possible she has Lyme s disease, because it s symptoms are similar. She was tested for Lyme s disease and the results were negative..but there can be false negatives.Trying to sort this out and find a new doctor who would dig deeper, but I am having trouble doing so.Any advice would be appreciated.Thank you.
gpt
Hi, thanks for the query. I would like to know what are the symptoms in your sister & how the symptoms/deficits have progressed (gradual/rapid) to ascertain whether or not she has a dementia process. Later on we can dig deeper by means of various investigations like MRI Brain, Neuropsychological assessment, test for Vitamin B12, folate levels, thiamine deficiency; test for neurosyphilis etc. to name a few causes of dementia 9Since you have already tested & ruled out Lyme's disease). If treatable; for example Vitamin B12 deficiency, neurosyphilis etc. we can use appropriate drugs to reverse these conditions & halt further damage to brain. But the damage already occured can not be reversed. Irrespective of all these causes; basic treatment modality of dementia is by drugs named cholinestrase inhibitors+ NMDA antagonist drugs (Donepezil+ memantine) which help to slow the dementia progress & allow more functional & fruitful life. In addition there are certain behavior techniques named as cognitive remediation taught by Psychologist & Psychiatrists to help these patients utilize their depleted brain reserves more effectively. Hope this helps. Good Luck