Dementia & Memory Care
Dementia & Memory Care
Dementia and memory care in plain language: what dementia is, how it is diagnosed, which tests and treatments help, and support for caregivers.
Prepared with AI assistance and checked against the linked sources. The update date records an editorial revision; it does not certify physician review.
Dementia & Memory Care
Memory changes are frightening. Clear answers help — for patients, for families, and for the clinicians who care for them.
This section explains dementia in plain language first, with clinician detail where it matters: what it is, how it is diagnosed, which tests and treatments help, and how families cope day to day.
Start where you are.
- I'm a patient or caregiver: start with What is dementia?, then Normal aging or dementia? and the early signs checklist.
- I'm a clinician: start with Cognitive assessment in primary care, the ATN framework guide, and the infusion referral workflow.
Understanding dementia
- What is dementia?
- The main types of dementia, and how they differ
- Normal aging or dementia?
- Early signs of dementia: a checklist for families
- Suddenly much more confused: delirium vs dementia
- Mild cognitive impairment (MCI)
- Dementia stages: mild, moderate, and severe
- Can a stroke cause dementia? Vascular dementia explained
- White spots on a brain MRI: what they mean
- What is amyloid?
Diagnosis & the clinic visit
- Your first dementia clinic visit: what to expect
- How to prepare for a memory clinic appointment
- The MMSE, explained
- MoCA vs MMSE
- After a dementia diagnosis: the first 90 days
Tests & diagnostics
- Brain MRI for dementia
- CT brain scans in dementia
- FDG-PET for dementia
- Amyloid PET
- What is p-tau217?
- Lumbar puncture for dementia
- Genetic testing for dementia
Treatments & infusion pathway
- Alzheimer's medicines overview
- Anti-amyloid infusions, explained
- Can I get an Alzheimer's infusion?
- What an infusion visit is like
- ARIA: the main side effect of infusions
Living well & caregiver support
- How to talk with someone living with dementia
- Sundowning: why evenings are harder, and what helps
- How much does memory care cost? Does Medicare pay?
- Medicare GUIDE: care navigation and respite
- Daily routines that help
- Driving and dementia
- Home safety checklist
- Legal planning in dementia
- Caregiver burnout
- Dementia support groups
This section is for education only and is not medical advice. If sudden weakness, speech trouble, vision loss, or confusion occurs, call 911 immediately.
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