Rusty: You can live your life with the treatment you get.
I suppose the drugs that they give us are obviously doing us good.
I know I'm taking medicine but I just don't think about it.
I think it must be helpful because I really don't have too many worries about it.
Dan Harwood: There is currently no known cure for dementia, although there is lots of research
going on to find one.
However, there are drugs that will help to treat some of the symptoms of dementia or
stop them progressing for a while.
This depends on what type of dementia someone has.
People have Alzheimer's disease or mixed dementia, where Alzheimer's is the main cause are usually
offered one of four drugs – donepezil, rivastigmine, galantamine or memantine.
These are widely known by the brand names, Aricept, Exelon, Reminyl and Ebixa but there
are others.
These drugs all help to tackle the physical changes in the brain that cause dementia.
The first three, donepezil, rivastigmine and galantamine are usually prescribed to people
who have mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease or mixed dementia.
Some people find these drugs lessen their symptoms for a while.
Benefits can include improvements in motivation, anxiety levels, confidence, daily living,
memory and thinking.
These drugs will initially be prescribed by a specialist, such as a consultant at the
memory clinic.
If one of these three drugs causes problematic side effects, it is possible to switch and
try one of the others.
People who have moderate Alzheimer's disease but can't take any of the three drugs we've
just talked about, perhaps because of side effects, might be offered memantine, known
as the brand name Ebixa.
It's also become more common to be offered memantine in the later stages of Alzheimer's
disease when symptoms become severe.
The benefits of memantine are that it can temporarily slow down the progression of symptoms
in people in the middle and later stages of Alzheimer's disease.
It may also help with agitation or aggressive behaviour which are more common in more advanced
dementia.
The last four drugs I've just described that are used for Alzheimer's disease aren't effective
for people with vascular dementia.
They are only given to people with vascular dementia when this is part of a mixed dementia
with Alzheimer's disease.
It may be possible to slow down the progression of vascular dementia by taking drugs that
treat the underlying conditions.
So the GP will often prescribe drugs for people with vascular dementia who are at risk of
having a stroke or who have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes or heart problems.
In many cases, the person will already be taking some of these medicines.
If they are experiencing distressing symptoms such as hallucinations, which is where people
see things that aren't there, or delusions, which is when they believe things that aren't
true, someone with dementia with Lewy bodies might benefit from one of the three anti-Alzheimer's
drugs, donepezil, rivastigmine or galantamine.
In frontotemporal dementia, the anti-Alzheimer's drugs haven't been shown to offer any benefits
and may even be harmful.
Because of this, they shouldn't be prescribed.
It's common for people with behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia to be prescribed anti-depressant
medication.
This can help to reduce some of the inappropriate obsessive or compulsive behaviours that are
common symptoms of frontotemporal dementia.
As with lots of medication, drugs to treat dementia can cause some side effects.
For example, donepezil can cause nausea or diarrhoea.
For more information on side effects, talk to your GP.
Drugs are not the only way to treat or manage the symptoms of dementia.
There are many other things that can help people to live well.
Talking therapies, such as counselling or psychotherapy give people the chance to speak
in confidence to a qualified professional about problems or issues that might be bothering
them.
They might help you to come to terms with the diagnosis and identify ways to live well
with dementia.
They may also help with symptoms of depression or anxiety.
Talking therapies typically involve regular sessions with a therapist, either one to one
or sometimes in a group.
They can be face to face or over the phone.
Some people will just have one session while the others will have therapy that continues
for many months.
Alongside talking therapies there are other non-drug approaches that may be helpful as
dementia progresses.
Some of the more commonly used ones are reminiscence therapy and life story work and cognitive
stimulation therapy.
Reminiscence work involves talking about things from the past using prompts such as photos,
familiar objects or music.
It can be one to one or in a group.
Life story work is usually shared between the person with dementia and a family member,
friend or support worker.
A scrap book or photo album is used to record details of the person's life.
These techniques particularly when done one on one can improve mood, wellbeing and some
mental or cognitive abilities such as memory.
At the same time, they can help others to focus on the person rather than their dementia.
The services available and how to be referred to one of them can vary around the country.
Ask your GP, memory service or local Alzheimer's Society for details of what is available in
your local area.
Another non-drug option for people with dementia is complementary therapy.
These therapies are outside of conventional medicine and are used to treat or prevent
illness and promote health and wellbeing.
Complementary therapy should be used alongside and not instead of conventional medicines.
Anyone thinking about trying these therapies should tell their GP.
Some examples of therapies that may help people with dementia are massage, aromatherapy, bright
light therapy where you sit in front of a light box, and music therapy.
Ann: I think I worry more about how Rusty's feeling in as much as he gets a bit depressed
with himself.
I think that's probably my biggest worry.
I think the fact that he worries about he can't do things like he used to.
Like he gets in a muddle if he tries to change plugs and he can't get the television to work
and things that he's always been able to do.
So he gets a bit depressed about that side of it.
Dan Harwood: It's quite common for people with dementia to experience depression or
anxiety, especially in the early stages.
People who have vascular dementia or Parkinson's disease dementia are more likely to experience
it than people with other types of dementia.
There are both drug and non-drug treatments that can be used for depression and anxiety.
Anti-depressants work by correcting the level of some chemicals in the brain.
But research has shown that common anti-depressants don't work as well for depression in people
with dementia as they do for people that don't have dementia.
It can take several weeks to notice the benefits of taking an anti-depressant.
Many people experience some side effects to begin with, but these usually lessen after
a week or two.
There are other ways to treat depression that don't involve taking drugs.
These include talking therapies such as counselling, reminiscence activities and life story work.
Other simple things that can help with depression and anxiety include keeping active, doing
activities that you enjoy, and talking to friends and family.
Eating a healthy diet and not having too much alcohol or caffeine can also help.
To find out more about treatments for dementia, visit alzheimers.org.uk/treatment