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Pseudo Dementia
After having experienced progressive cognitive decline over the past ten months, coupled with all manner of random shooting pains, blurred vision, muscle twitching, movement issues, etc, I've now been told by two different neurologists in the past month, I'm suffering from some sort of pseudo dementia / severe somatisation disorder.
As previously, perfectly healthy 35 year old male, I find this very hard to accept, but have now had so many different opinions this year, all alluding to the same diagnosis, two normal MRI scans of the brain, innumerable blood tests, etc, I guess I'm just going to have to go with it.
My question is, how is something like pseudo dementia treated?
As previously, perfectly healthy 35 year old male, I find this very hard to accept, but have now had so many different opinions this year, all alluding to the same diagnosis, two normal MRI scans of the brain, innumerable blood tests, etc, I guess I'm just going to have to go with it.
My question is, how is something like pseudo dementia treated?
I have MS and mostly cognitive problems and depression. I had positive MRIs but it still took two years to be diagnosed. They tried treating my cognitive problems with amphetamine. I did not like the way I felt. I have to make lists and post its and have my husband remind me of things. I am patient with myself and realize I think differently than I used to. If I fight it makes it worse. I use too much energy so I work with it. Like fighting depression drains more energy. When I accept I am depressed I do better.
Good luck to you.
Alex
Good luck to you.
Alex
Since you are posting in the depression forum are you under treatment for depression? What medications are you taking? Some medications can cause cognitive blunting or cause movement disorders. That may very well not be the cause of it but they should rule that out. Many of these side effects are temporary so they could change or adjust your medication. Look up the medication websites for a start and speak to your psychiatrist more about it.
No, I've never had any sort of head injury of any kind.
To date, I've had two MRI's of the brain - one in April, and a repeat scan two weeks ago. Both normal. Blood tests for all the normal things, plus a whole bunch of more exotic possibilities, all of which have been normal.
Later this month, I'm having an MRI of my eyes, because of the blurred vision I keep getting. I'm also having some sort of muscle/nerve investigation carried out, along with an evoked potentials test.
One neurologist earlier in the year, mentioned about having an EEG and a lumber punch, but neither of these ever happened, I think predominately as he'd made up his mind that my symptoms were psychological. I've asked the neurologist I've seeing currently who's carrying out the above tests about these, and he deemed them to be unnecessary.
He's told me that if the tests listed come back normal, then the fact I've now also had a repeat MRI of the brain which was also normal, then the cause is definitely psychological, and the possibility of any more tests is out of the question, as I would need to start some sort of treatment for pseudo dementia.
To date, I've had two MRI's of the brain - one in April, and a repeat scan two weeks ago. Both normal. Blood tests for all the normal things, plus a whole bunch of more exotic possibilities, all of which have been normal.
Later this month, I'm having an MRI of my eyes, because of the blurred vision I keep getting. I'm also having some sort of muscle/nerve investigation carried out, along with an evoked potentials test.
One neurologist earlier in the year, mentioned about having an EEG and a lumber punch, but neither of these ever happened, I think predominately as he'd made up his mind that my symptoms were psychological. I've asked the neurologist I've seeing currently who's carrying out the above tests about these, and he deemed them to be unnecessary.
He's told me that if the tests listed come back normal, then the fact I've now also had a repeat MRI of the brain which was also normal, then the cause is definitely psychological, and the possibility of any more tests is out of the question, as I would need to start some sort of treatment for pseudo dementia.
so sorry for all your run around and still really UN diagnosis!!
question ...I'm sure this must have been covered thru your many neurology appointments....but I will ask anyway.
HAVE YOU SUFFERED ANY SORT OF HEAD INJURY?
HAVE YOU BEEN GIVEN AN ECT electrical conductivity test on your brain???
you are much too young for any dementia...there is something CAUSING your cognitive problems
question ...I'm sure this must have been covered thru your many neurology appointments....but I will ask anyway.
HAVE YOU SUFFERED ANY SORT OF HEAD INJURY?
HAVE YOU BEEN GIVEN AN ECT electrical conductivity test on your brain???
you are much too young for any dementia...there is something CAUSING your cognitive problems
I think you've hit the nail on the head, with how it's all too easy for doctors to read the previous doctors opinion and just side with that - I think that's very true of my case so far.
As I'm in the U.K, you need a referral from your family doctor to see any sort of consultant, and with that, they have to supply a degree of background information. It's practically impossible to just see a consultant, whether it be a psychiatrist, neurologist, etc or otherwise, without going down this route.
Since the onset of my symptoms in December 2008, I've seen 4 different neurologists, two psychiatrists, an endocrinologist, and a neuropsychatrist, all of whom have seen each others opinion to some degree, which I can't but help feel has influenced each of their diagnosis.
I don't really believe I've got pseudo dementia for one minute, especially given my age, and having no previous history of depression whatsoever, except a moderate bout 10 years ago, after a particularly unpleasant relationship break-up.
The fact now I have tremendous anxiety, as a direct consequence of the debilitating cognitive problems I'm experiencing, seems to have only clouded doctors evaluation of my case. I've told them all innumerable times, that the anxiety was not present to begin with, and has only come about over more recent times, given how my cognition has declined so rapidly, but this just seems to fall on deaf ears.
The symptoms of cognitive decline, memory loss, etc, have all been progressive since onset, and there's been no good/bad days, which would make me question how an anxiety disorder could explain things, pretty much in the same way that I'm at a loss about the diagnosis of pseudo dementia, which I've been informed originates from having some sort of underlying depressive disorder, which just wasn't present.
I've been told it's now out of the question that I'd be able to seek the opinion of a fifth neurologist, within the space of 10 months, and to be honest, given my experiences with all the ones I've seen so far, think it would be an absolute waste of time, despite my symptoms being predominately ones of a neurological nature, so feel I have little choice now, other than to go down the route that this is some sort of psychological condition, irrespective of how crazy the notion is.
I think my main problem is, that whilst I get terribly confused now, not really knowing what I'm doing half of the time, unable to follow steps, sequences etc where the likes of self care, meal preparation is involved, I'm still able to articulate myself fairly coherently verbally, when it comes to informing doctors of my problems.
I think this is what's led to such a diagnosis having been made, given how in neurologists eyes, it seems impossible that someone could be confused to the degree I'm telling them I am, yet be able to explain all this to them without much trouble.
As I'm in the U.K, you need a referral from your family doctor to see any sort of consultant, and with that, they have to supply a degree of background information. It's practically impossible to just see a consultant, whether it be a psychiatrist, neurologist, etc or otherwise, without going down this route.
Since the onset of my symptoms in December 2008, I've seen 4 different neurologists, two psychiatrists, an endocrinologist, and a neuropsychatrist, all of whom have seen each others opinion to some degree, which I can't but help feel has influenced each of their diagnosis.
I don't really believe I've got pseudo dementia for one minute, especially given my age, and having no previous history of depression whatsoever, except a moderate bout 10 years ago, after a particularly unpleasant relationship break-up.
The fact now I have tremendous anxiety, as a direct consequence of the debilitating cognitive problems I'm experiencing, seems to have only clouded doctors evaluation of my case. I've told them all innumerable times, that the anxiety was not present to begin with, and has only come about over more recent times, given how my cognition has declined so rapidly, but this just seems to fall on deaf ears.
The symptoms of cognitive decline, memory loss, etc, have all been progressive since onset, and there's been no good/bad days, which would make me question how an anxiety disorder could explain things, pretty much in the same way that I'm at a loss about the diagnosis of pseudo dementia, which I've been informed originates from having some sort of underlying depressive disorder, which just wasn't present.
I've been told it's now out of the question that I'd be able to seek the opinion of a fifth neurologist, within the space of 10 months, and to be honest, given my experiences with all the ones I've seen so far, think it would be an absolute waste of time, despite my symptoms being predominately ones of a neurological nature, so feel I have little choice now, other than to go down the route that this is some sort of psychological condition, irrespective of how crazy the notion is.
I think my main problem is, that whilst I get terribly confused now, not really knowing what I'm doing half of the time, unable to follow steps, sequences etc where the likes of self care, meal preparation is involved, I'm still able to articulate myself fairly coherently verbally, when it comes to informing doctors of my problems.
I think this is what's led to such a diagnosis having been made, given how in neurologists eyes, it seems impossible that someone could be confused to the degree I'm telling them I am, yet be able to explain all this to them without much trouble.
I totally agree with the last post. When seeking another opinion go in stating all the tests that have been done, BUT with no diagnosis.
Pseudodementia is a syndrome seen in older people in which they exhibit symptoms consistent with dementia but the cause is a pre-existing psychiatric illness rather than a degenerative one.[1] The name is derived from the Ancient Greek prefix pseudo- "false", prepended to dementia.
Older people with predominant cognitive symptoms such as loss of memory, and vagueness, as well as prominent slowing of movement and reduced or slowed speech, were sometimes misdiagnosed as having dementia when further investigation showed they were suffering from a major depressive episode.[2] This was an important distinction as the former was untreatable and progressive and the latter treatable with antidepressant therapy or electroconvulsive therapy or both.[3]
You don't fit the profiel, get a second opinion.
Pseudodementia is a syndrome seen in older people in which they exhibit symptoms consistent with dementia but the cause is a pre-existing psychiatric illness rather than a degenerative one.[1] The name is derived from the Ancient Greek prefix pseudo- "false", prepended to dementia.
Older people with predominant cognitive symptoms such as loss of memory, and vagueness, as well as prominent slowing of movement and reduced or slowed speech, were sometimes misdiagnosed as having dementia when further investigation showed they were suffering from a major depressive episode.[2] This was an important distinction as the former was untreatable and progressive and the latter treatable with antidepressant therapy or electroconvulsive therapy or both.[3]
You don't fit the profiel, get a second opinion.
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