ABSTRACT
The natural effects of ageing on the brain are explained. The types of dementia, the factors leading to dementia and the symptoms of dementia are defined. The pathophysiology of Alzheimer disease is explained in detail, in particular the amyloid plaques and tau tangle formation. The genetics of dementia is also explained in detail. Vascular dementia (reduced blood supply to the brain), frontotemporal dementia (Pick disease) and dementia with cortical Lewy bodies are all described. Drugs, both those currently in use to slow the progress of cognitive decline and those in development for the future that will reduce amyloid plaques, are explained.
