Montessori Benefits

Frequently Asked Questions

 

 

Q.  Should we tell our mum, who has dementia, that her husband has died?

A.  Losing a loved one, friend of family member is difficult for anyone, but understanding loss               can be particularly difficult for people with dementia.  If your father has died recently, it may be worth telling your mum a few times to see if she can remember. However, you may find that repeatedly telling her this news is distressing her each time.

Instead, when she asks or talks about her husband, you could ask her to tell you what she remembers about him, and about the good times they had together. If she is worried about him, perhaps you can offer reassurance by telling her that he is alright and safe, without actually telling her that he is dead.

 

Q.  Declarative vs. procedural memory

 

A. It is important to understand the type of memory that is spared in dementia,

procedural memory – such as how to eat, how to dress, or reading. The memory

that dementia targets (declarative memory – such as family names, how to get to

the grocery store, events) must be addressed in a supportive environment.

 

Q. What does the Montessori approach focuses on?

A. The Montessori approach focuses on re-discovering and supporting the person

behind the dementia. Activities with meaning and purpose are put back into

people’s lives, based on their needs, interests, skills and abilities.

People with dementia often feel they are always being told what to. They are

adults and often do not need to be told, but they do want to be needed and feel

useful.

Montessori methods help reduce and prevent challenging behaviours associated

with dementia. Boredom and loneliness are reduced through activities that

embrace roles, routines, and improve self-esteem.

When the person isn’t capable of “remembering” important information, the cues

should be available in his/her environment.

 

Q. What is Alzheimer’s disease?

A. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia among older people. It involves parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. Alzheimer’s damages a person’s ability to reason, remember, speak, perform simple calculations, and carry out routine tasks. Over time, patients also may become anxious or aggressive or wander away from home. In the later stages, they may forget how to do basic tasks, like brushing their teeth or dressing themselves. Eventually, patients need total care.

 

Q. If a member of my family has Alzheimer’s disease, am I at increased risk for developing it?

A. Two types of Alzheimer’s disease exist: early-onset familial Alzheimer’s disease or FAD, and late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Early-onset FAD is a rare, inherited form of the disease that occurs between age 30 and 60. Several members of the same generation of a family are often affected. In late-onset Alzheimer’s disease, which most often occurs after age 65, there is no obvious family pattern in most cases. Late-onset Alzheimer’s disease develops for reasons that scientists are still trying to determine. Age is the most important known risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. Having a family member with Alzheimer’s disease does increase the risk for developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease, but by no means guarantees that you will develop the disease.

 

Q. Do mentally stimulating activities protect against Alzheimer’s disease?

A. Studies have shown that keeping the brain active may be associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease. In a study with nuns, priests, and brothers known as the Religious Orders Study, researchers asked more than 700 participants to describe the amount of time they spent in seven mentally stimulating activities. These activities included listening to the radio, reading newspapers, playing puzzle games, and going to museums.

 

Q. What is the relationship between aluminum and the development of Alzheimer’s disease?

A. When researchers found traces of this metal in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease, some thought it might play a role in causing the disease. However, many studies since then have not shown aluminum to be associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

 

Q. How is Alzheimer’s disease diagnosed?

A. At specialized centers, doctors can diagnose “possible” or “probable” Alzheimer’s disease correctly up to 90 percent of the time. Doctors use several tools to diagnose “probable” Alzheimer’s disease. These tools include a complete medical history and tests that measure memory, problem solving, attention, counting, and language abilities. Medical tests such as analysis of blood, urine, or spinal fluid are used to determine if the dementia has another cause. Brain scans allow the doctor to look at a picture of the brain to see if there is anything unusual — such as evidence of strokes — that could account for the dementia. However, the only definite way to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease is to find out whether there are plaques and tangles in brain tissue. To look at brain tissue, doctors must wait until they do an autopsy, which is an examination of the body done after a person dies.

 

Q. How accurate are tests for Alzheimer’s disease?

A. Doctors in specialized Alzheimer’s disease treatment centers can now diagnose Alzheimer’s disease with up to 90 percent accuracy in a living person.

 

Q. How important is a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease?

A. The earlier an accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease is made, the greater the gain in managing symptoms and allowing the person to take part in future life course decisions.

 

Q. How is Alzheimer’s disease treated?

A. No treatment is yet available that can stop Alzheimer’s disease. However, for some people in the early and middle stages of the disease, the drugs Aricept®, Exelon®, or Razadyne® — also known as Reminyl® — may help prevent some symptoms from becoming worse for a limited time. Aricept® is also approved for severe symptoms of Alzheimer’s. Memantine, also known by its brand name Namenda®, is approved for use in moderate to severe forms of the disease. Also, some medicines may help control behavioral symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease such as sleeplessness, agitation, wandering, anxiety, and depression. Treating these symptoms often makes people with Alzheimer’s more comfortable and makes their care easier.

 

Q. Will a vaccine one day prevent Alzheimer’s disease?

A. Early vaccine studies in mice successfully reduced beta-amyloid plaques in the brain and improved the way mice performed on memory tests. But when the studies were conducted in humans, they had to be stopped because some participants experienced side effects. However, scientists are continuing to study variations in the vaccine approach in the hope that they will reduce the beta-amyloid in the brain while minimizing harmful side effects.

 

Q. Is vitamin E effective against Alzheimer’s?

A. Researchers funded by the National Institute on Aging recently completed a clinical trial focusing on the use of vitamin E in people with mild cognitive impairment, or MCI. MCI is a type of memory change that is different from both Alzheimer’s and age-related memory change. People with MCI have ongoing memory problems, but do not have noticeable problems in other areas like confusion, attention problems, and difficulty with language. This 3-year trial compared the drug donepezil or vitamin E to a placebo in people with mild cognitive impairment to see if the drug or vitamin might delay or prevent the development of Alzheimer’s. The study found that taking vitamin E did not prevent or delay Alzheimer’s disease in persons with MCI. It is possible that vitamin E may not help after memory loss has already started. However, donepezil, also known as Aricept®, did seem to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s but only during the first year of treatment, providing no clear guidance to doctors about prescribing donepezil for people with MCI.

 

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