Dementia causes symptoms like difficulties with memory and making decisions and changes in behavior and mood.
This article reviews the symptoms, diagnosis, risk factors, and treatment of Parkinson’s disease dementia.
In some instances, visual hallucinations are simple.
Jessie Casson / Getty Images
Confounding the picture is that some drugs used to treat Parkinson’s disease can aggravate visual hallucinations.
These drugs include:
How Is Parkinsons Dementia Diagnosed?
No single blood or imaging test on its own can diagnose Parkinson’s dementia.
What Causes Parkinsons Dementia?
These two proteins are linked toAlzheimer’s disease.
However, Parkinson’s is primarily a movement disorder that cansometimescause dementia, whereas Alzheimer’s diseasealwayscauses dementia.
In addition, some early disease symptoms are linked to an increased risk of Parkinson’s dementia.
Side Note
The presence of the APOE-4 gene is also a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease.
A1-42 is the major component of amyloid collections seen in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease.
How Is Parkinsons Dementia Treated?
Nuplaz (pimavanserin) is an antipsychotic approved for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease psychosis.
Nuplaz is the only medication FDA-approved to treat hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson’s disease.
Healthcare providers may prescribe medications like Nuplazid off-label to treat Parkinson’s dementia.
Other distinguishing features are:
End-Stage Parkinsons Dementia
Severe, debilitating symptoms mark end-stage Parkinson’s dementia.
In fact, some research suggests that a person with PDD lives an average of five to seven years.
Sleep and mood problems like apathy (lack of motivation) are also common.
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