What Is Multi-Infarct Dementia?

Dementia describes impairment in intellectual processes, daily activities and relationship functions that accompany a number of disorders affecting the brain. Multi-infarct dementia (MID) is a type of vascular dementia, the second-most common form of dementia after Alzheimer's disease.

Features

• Multi-infarct dementia (MID) is caused by multiple strokes, or infarcts that disrupt blood flow to the brain and result in damage to brain tissue. MID affects more males than females, has an onset age usually between age 60 to 75 and a progressive downward course, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Effects

• Depending on the affected brain area, symptoms of MID include confusion, memory loss, getting lost in familiar places, incontinence and difficulties with daily activities such as money transactions. MID can also manifest as laughing or crying inappropriately, as well as other behavioral and personality changes.

Distinction

• MID and other forms of dementia such as Alzheimer's disease share symptoms and can occur together. Firm diagnosis, therefore, is often challenging. Unlike Alzheimer's disease, which tends to have an insidious onset and gradual progression, MID often has a sudden onset and a step-wise progression, marked by times of little change in symptoms, or even improvement, before the next deterioration.

Prevention/Solution

• A healthy diet reduces risks.

  Treatment focuses on preventing future strokes by managing stroke risk factors: diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. The best prevention of MID is eating a healthy diet, exercising, not smoking, using alcohol in moderation and maintaining a healthy weight.

Misconceptions

• The National Institutes of Health states that although common among the very elderly, dementia is not a normal part of the aging process. Many people reach their 90s and even 100s without suffering from any dementia symptoms.

Warning

• Sudden symptoms, such as slurred speech, blurred vision or weakness on one side of the body--even if temporary--may be caused by interruptions in the blood supply within the brain. The National Institute of Aging recommends getting emergency medical care for these symptoms because, if left untreated, they can result in irreversible damage.