Question 1

My great-grandfather went mad in a mental hospital, and my mother says he was suffering from dementia. Is it hereditary?

Accepted Answer

One type of dementia is caused by a faulty gene, and a parent with this could pass on the condition to 50 per cent of his or her children. But such occurrences are very rare. And while other forms have some genetic influence, the majority are not influential in family transmission, so stop worrying.

Question 2

I am in my 50s and seem to be getting increasingly absent minded. Could I be in the early stages of dementia?

Accepted Answer

This is highly unlikely. Admittedly, one of the first signs of dementia in the elderly is a tendency to forget things, but that is all. Generally, absent-mindedness is due to intense concentration in another direction, which can hardly be equated with the deterioration associated with dementia.

Question 3

Can taking certain drugs bring on dementia? I have read somewhere that it can?

Accepted Answer

Yes, this is so. Any chemical that produces brain damage, such as excessive alcohol, will cause this. On the other hand, there are many drugs (taken either for medical purposes or, in the popular sense, for ‘kicks’) which either have no effect on the brain at all. If they do, it does not permanently damage and affect brain function.

Question 4

Do you have to be senile to be demented?

Accepted Answer

No. There are at least six causes of dementia, and only one of these is old age. There are many very old people who are not suffering from dementia.

Question 5

I have just been diagnosed as being in the early stages of syphilis. Will I go mad?

Accepted Answer

Not so long ago, this would have been a disturbing possibility. But new and effective treatment will clear up your symptoms quickly and make the likelihood of dementia at some later stage most unlikely.