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"   Question What&amp;#039;s the difference between senile dementia and lunacy.  How can I distinguish between them?    Answer Lunacy is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as:  insanity  great folly or eccentricity; a foolish act.   It&amp;#039;s an old-fashioned, historical medical term derived from the Latin luna &amp;#039;moon&amp;#039; from the out-dated belief that changes of the moon caused intermittent insanity.  From lunacy comes lunatic \u2013 an insane person; and lunatic asylum \u2013 the historical term for a psychiatric hospital. Senile dementia on the other hand is a definitive medical diagnosis that can be caused by a number of differing pathologies affecting the frontal lobes of the brain and leading to the progressive deterioration of mental functioning particularly memory.  The term isn&amp;#039;t really often used by doctors now \u2013 instead they tend to use the term &amp;#039;vascular dementia&amp;#039;.  Yours sincerely  The NetDoctor Medical Team   Other Qs &amp;amp;amp; As Is this a sign of dementia? My husband has dementia and chews his pills Natural remedies for fronto-temporal dementia? Signs of dementia  Last updated 29.01.2012 "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ask-the-expert/brain-and-nervous-system/a12055/senile-dementia-and-lunacy/>