Dementia is the broad classification of "memory problems people get that aren't consistent with normal aging." In essence, its the umbrella that covers all the memory problems associated with aging but that aren't just you getting old, they're worse in some form or fashion.
Alzheimer's is a specific cause of dementia, and also the most common one. Alzheimer's dementia has a pattern that doctors can look for and can extrapolate out the timeline for the rest of the disease.
Different forms of dementia have different patterns and different timelines. Some are faster or slower. Some come with personality changes, others hallucinations, others muscle control issues. What type of dementia you have is important in determining what symptoms you will have and how long you are likely to live. Depending on what type it is, you diagnose these with brain scans, blood work, or simply asking the patient and their family what symptoms they're experiencing.
Lazygamer14 t1_j2bwt4a wrote
Reply to ELI5: Alzheimer's is dementia, but not all dementia is Alzheimer's. So what is the difference? by degobrah
Dementia is the broad classification of "memory problems people get that aren't consistent with normal aging." In essence, its the umbrella that covers all the memory problems associated with aging but that aren't just you getting old, they're worse in some form or fashion.
Alzheimer's is a specific cause of dementia, and also the most common one. Alzheimer's dementia has a pattern that doctors can look for and can extrapolate out the timeline for the rest of the disease.
Different forms of dementia have different patterns and different timelines. Some are faster or slower. Some come with personality changes, others hallucinations, others muscle control issues. What type of dementia you have is important in determining what symptoms you will have and how long you are likely to live. Depending on what type it is, you diagnose these with brain scans, blood work, or simply asking the patient and their family what symptoms they're experiencing.