The Different Types of Dementia

Lesson Outline

Dementias are most often caused by toxic proteins or blood vessel damage in the brain. There are also reversible causes such as depression. Signs and symptoms may look and sound different based on the cause and the area of the brain that is affected.

There can also be an overlap or similarities between the types of dementia. It is not uncommon for people to have mixed dementia which is a combination of two or more disorders. For example, some people may have both Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia.

There isn’t an easy way to make a definite diagnosis in many cases, as there isn’t one single test to confirm it. Often, signs and symptoms may change over time. This sometimes leads to a change in the most likely root cause of the dementia.