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Questions posted in the
Neurology and Neurosurgery Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Question Title: Hardening of the brain???Forum: Neurology Forum
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Re: Hardening of the brain???Posted by CCF Neuro MD on February 07, 1998 at 17:13:49: In Reply to: Hardening of the brain??? posted by EJ on February 07, 1998 at 01:44:18:
: I was told my father has been diagnosed with 'hardening of the brain'. He is 70 years old, but started to show the first symptoms around 65. At that time, he suffered from sleep apnea, which was successfully treated. Shortly thereafter, he started to show clear signs of memory loss, to the point that he could not safely travel anymore. He started to avoid contact with people and spent his time reading, solving crosswords and other puzzels Currently, he does not recognize his family anymore and does not know where he is. He also displays a mild tremor, which has been attributed to the onset As I live thousands of miles away from my dad, I have to rely on others Any suggestions what this could be or any more likely diagnosis??? Thank you in advance, = The term " hardening of the brain " is not a recognized medical term, I suspect that it is being used as a sort of simplified term to convey the idea of the wasting, shrinkage and decline in function of the brain which is called atrophy and is a feature of dementing illnesses including frontal lobe dementia. This is similar to the term "Hardening of the arteries " used to describe the pathological condition atherosclerosis. In frontal lobe dementia there is selective shrinkage and scarring of the frontal lobes of the brain, the brain is visibly smaller and shrunken, both on scans and on direct viewing and may be firmer to touch due to scarring or fibrosis. The effects you mention on personality and memory are typical, with social withdrawal, apathy, memory loss ,poor concentration, poor emotional control,and communication difficulties. This condition is different from Alzheimers in that a different lobe of the brain the parietal lobe is predominantly involved in alzheimers and the development of symptoms in the early stages is subtly different. As the disease progresses, however for practical purposes, the diseases are very similar , in their effects on the patient , progressive nature and unfortunately in lack of treatment options. A number of medications have been licensed for use in dementia of the alzheimers variety, you should ask your neurologist if he would agree with trying these in your father, the will not bring about dramatic improvements but may slow the rate of decline. EJ Can anyone supply more information? Thank you in advance! EJ
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