Dementia
Significant loss of intellectual abilities, such as memory capacity, that is severe enough to interfere with social or occupational functioning. Criteria for the diagnosis of dementia include impairment of attention, orientation, memory, judgment, language, motor and spatial skills, and function. By definition, dementia is not due to major depression or schizophrenia. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. Other causes include AIDS, alcoholism, brain injury, vascular dementia (damage to the blood vessels leading to the brain), dementia with Lewy bodies, brain tumors, drug toxicity, infection of brain, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, meningitis, Pick disease, syphilis, and hypothyroidism.
Read Also:
- Dementia, MELAS
Dementia, MELAS: MELAS is the acronym for Mitochondrial Encephalopathy, Lactic Acidosis, and Strokelike episodes. MELAS is a form of dementia. It is caused by mutations in the genetic material (DNA) in the mitochondria. While most of our DNA is in the chromosomes in the cell nucleus, another important cell structure that carries DNA is the […]
- Demonophobia
Demonophobia: An abnormal and persistent fear of evil supernatural beings in persons who believe such beings exist and roam freely to cause harm. Those who suffer from this phobia realize their fear is excessive or irrational. Nevertheless, they become unduly anxious when discussing demons, when venturing alone into woods or a dark house, or when […]
- Demulcent
Demulcent: An agent that forms a soothing, protective film when administered onto a mucous membrane surface. For example, mucilage and oils are demulcents that can relieve irritation of the bowel lining.
- Demyelination
Demyelination: A degenerative process that erodes away the myelin sheath that normally protects nerve fibers. Demyelination exposes these fibers and appears to cause problems in nerve impulse conduction that may affect many physical systems. Demyelinization is seen in a number of diseases, particularly multiple sclerosis. Diagnosis is by functional observation and by testing for myelin […]
- Dendrite
Dendrite: A short arm-like protuberance from a nerve cell (a neuron). Dendrites from neurons next to one another are tipped by synapses (tiny transmitters and receivers for chemical messages between the cells). The word “dendrite” means “branched like a tree.” It comes from the Greek “dendron” (tree). See also neuron and axon.