Not everything that presents as memory loss is dementia. Enter and discover what depressive pseudodementia is and why they call it reversible “dementia.”
Diagnosing dementia is usually a complicated task since, despite involving different tests, sometimes the results of neurological examinations do not match the person’s symptoms. This leads to various difficulties in differentiating dementia from both normal aging and a depressive state
In fact, in the case of Alzheimer’s, one of the characteristics that can be witnessed through techniques such as neuroimaging is smaller brain tissue with more marked grooves. However, there are people who suffer from Alzheimer’s who do not have this characteristic, as well as others who do not suffer from this disease and do obtain these results. That is why, despite having multiple tests for the diagnosis of dementia, one of the criteria that ends up being most important for the diagnosis is the person’s affectation, that is, the assessment of how the person’s functioning was before presenting the symptoms. current symptoms and what it is like now.
In order to understand what is depressive pseudodementia First, it is important to understand what dementia is and what it entails.
Dementia is not a specific disease but is a term used to refer to a group of diseases that are degenerative, that is, those that imply deterioration over time and that usually have multiple causes. The most common dementia today is Alzheimer’s; it is estimated that between 1-3% of the general population suffers from this type of dementia.
However, in the DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), the term dementia is replaced by neurocognitive disorders where, apart from including dementia, disorders associated with infections such as HIV, etc. are also included. Dementia is associated with a certain age, but there are neurocognitive disorders with similar symptoms that can appear at any stage of the life cycle.
Symptoms of dementia:
Specifically, dementia usually affects different cognitive functions to a greater or lesser extent:
Attention: People with dementia may have difficulty carrying out normal tasks, needing more checks to ensure that the work done does not contain any errors. In more advanced dementias there is great difficulty maintaining attention, so in spaces where there are multiple stimuli they are easily distracted.
Ability to plan and make decisions: They usually have difficulties finishing projects or continuing activities that have been interrupted. For example, a person with dementia will find it difficult to continue watching a program if they have been called on the phone and interrupted. It is for this reason that they usually present a lot of fatigue since they have to make a greater effort to organize, plan and make decisions.
Learning and memory: They can range from difficulties remembering recent events to problems with autobiographical memory (of past events in our own life) and semantic memory (of meanings and general knowledge). However, at the onset of dementia, difficulties related to recent events tend to predominate more.
Language: People who suffer from dementia often have language difficulties that can occur both in expressive language (grammar, fluency, etc.) and comprehension.
Motor and perceptual skills: Sometimes, they show problems related to spatial locations (maps, finding directions, etc.) and in the most serious cases there is a deterioration in the ability to function in those environments or activities that were previously common, such as difficulties in use of cutlery.
Social behavior: They usually have problems recognizing different emotions. That is why they can present changes in behavior and personality. In the most serious cases they may have strange behavior according to what is considered “normal” by the social environment.
Depending on the type of dementia you have and the degree of involvement, these areas will be affected in one way or another.
What is depressive pseudodementia?
Depressive pseudodementia is a depressive condition that is characterized by symptoms insane This means that the person really suffers from depression but presents a series of cognitive symptoms similar to those of dementia. This happens because depression can have different symptoms depending on the age of the person who suffers from it. However, cognitive symptoms decrease when starting pharmacological treatment consisting of antidepressants.
However, various studies have confirmed that multiple cases initially treated as depressive states have ended up leading to real dementia and, on the other hand, some cases initially diagnosed as dementia have changed the diagnosis to depressive syndromes
Differences between dementia and depressive pseudodementia:
As mentioned previously, there is great difficulty in differentiating dementia and depression in older people. However, there are certain factors that allow us to differentiate between both pathologies:
Start and duration: The onset of dementia usually has a slow onset, the symptoms develop progressively and therefore, dementia usually has a long duration. In contrast, the onset of depression is usually rapid and when treated, its duration is usually short. Furthermore, the existence of problems in the subject’s life can normally be confirmed, such as feelings of abandonment due to little family contact, etc.
Complaints: People who suffer from dementia do not usually present complaints or worry about the progressive loss of cognitive functions although they struggle when performing certain tasks. However, older people with depression often complain recurrently about cognitive symptoms (memory, concentration, attention, etc.), they often comment that they feel incapable and frustrated when faced with failures. They do not make an effort to carry out the tasks of daily life, no matter how simple they may be.
Social skills: As the onset of dementia is usually slow, in the initial stages of the disease, problems with social skills do not usually occur. On the other hand, in the case of depression, there are great differences with respect to previous functioning, in addition to presenting an intense feeling of discomfort.
Symptoms: The memory loss due to depression It differs from dementia because difficulties appear in both short-term memory and memory of past events. On the other hand, in the case of dementia, the impairment of this cognitive function usually begins with a more severe loss in the memory of recent events.
Response to treatment: Dementia does not subside with treatment with antidepressants, but the cognitive symptoms of pseudodementia disappear when treatment for depression is started.
Remember that it is absolutely essential that when symptoms appear that interfere with your daily life, you go to a professional in order to know the diagnosis and, therefore, be able to start the most relevant treatment according to the case.
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This article has been reviewed by our editorial team at PsychologyFor to ensure accuracy, clarity, and adherence to evidence-based research. The content is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional mental health advice.
