Senile psychosis is a collective term that includes a group of mental disorders that occur in people over 60 years of age. It is accompanied by confusion and states of the type of schizophrenia, as well as manic-depressive psychosis. The books write that senile psychosis and senile dementia are one and the same. But this assumption is erroneous. Senile psychosis provokes dementia, but it will not be complete. In addition, the main signs of the disease resemble a psychotic disorder. Although the mind often remains normal.
Causes of occurrence
The main reason senile psychosis appears is the gradual destruction of brain cells. But the reason does not lie only in old age, since not everyone has it. Genetics is sometimes involved. It was noticed that if there were cases of a similar disease in the family, then it is quite possible that you will have it too.
Senile psychosis has 2 forms. The first is acute, the second is chronic. What are they characterized by? The acute form is accompanied by clouding of the mind, and the chronic form is accompanied by paranoid, depressive, hallucinatory and paraphrenic psychoses. No matter how old you are, treatment is a must for everyone.
Causes of senile psychoses
Consider them in more detail than indicated above. So, the causes of senile diseases are as follows:
- Diseases of the respiratory system.
- Inadequate intake of vitamins.
- Heart failure.
- Urogenital diseases.
- Surgical interventions.
- Trouble sleeping.
- Lack of exercise.
- Unbalanced diet.
- Vision or hearing problems.
Now consider what constitutes senile dementia (symptoms, treatment). How many live with this disease? We will answer this question in more detail below.
Common symptoms of senile psychosis
- Slow course of the disease.
- Weakening ability to remember.
- Distorted perception of reality.
- A sharp change of character.
- Trouble sleeping.
- Anxiety.
Symptoms of acute forms of psychosis
- Inconcentrated attention and difficulty orienting in space.
- Difficulties with personal care.
- Fast fatiguability.
- Disturbed sleep, anxious state.
- Lack of appetite.
- Feeling of helplessness, confusion and fear.
The patient's condition is accompanied by delirium and a constant expectation of trouble. All psychoses can occur continuously or have periods of enlightenment. The duration of the disease is about 4 weeks, as was written above.
Symptoms of chronic forms
- Depression.
- Feelings of uselessness.
- Mild depression.
- Self-incrimination.
In various cases, the symptoms can be combined in different ways. Because of this, it is very difficult to recognize this pathology.
Acute forms of senile psychosis
They arise against the background of somatic diseases, for this they are called bodily. Anything can cause a disorder, from a lack of vitamins and minerals to problems with hearing and the visual apparatus.
Since the health of older people is undermined, often they try not to go to the hospital, they diagnose diseases belatedly. And this leads to problems in the treatment of dementia. All of the above once again shows how important it is to timely diagnose diseases of old people and treat them. Indeed, irreparable harm may be inflicted on their mental state .
The acute form develops suddenly, but sometimes it is preceded by a prodrome from 1 to 3 days.
At this time, a person has a feeling of weakness and problems with maintaining personal hygiene, confusion, hallucinations. Then an attack of acute psychosis occurs.
During the latter, a person observes randomness of movements and anxiety, confused thinking. There is delirium and thoughts that they want to take his life, to take his property from him, etc. Hallucinations and delusions sometimes arise, but they are few, and they are constant. In some cases, when senile psychosis occurs, the symptoms of existing diseases of the body worsen.
Psychosis lasts about 3-4 weeks. Its course is either continuous or with remissions. It is treated only in a hospital.
Chronic forms of senile psychosis
What is chronic psychosis? Symptoms and signs of the disease are now discussed. Depressive conditions are one of the first symptoms of the disease.
It is found mainly in women. If the degree of the disease is mild, then there are observed: weakness, lack of desire to do something, a sense of meaninglessness, uselessness. If the patient's condition is serious, then anxiety, deep depression, delirium of self-flagellation, agitation appear. The duration of the disease is 13-18 years. The memory is practically saved.
Paranoid conditions
Relate this pathology to a disease of senile age. Its peculiarity is in constant delirium, which pours out on its own relatives or neighbors. A sick person claims that he is not allowed to live in his own apartment quietly, they want to drive him out, kill, poison, etc. He believes that things are taken from him.
If a person has a separate room, he is locked there and does not let anyone in there. But, fortunately, with this variety, a person can independently take care of himself. In a paranoid state, socialization is preserved, since the disease develops for a long time.
Hallucinosis
Hallucinosis is also a psychosis. Symptoms and signs of it vary depending on the type: verbal, tactile and visual.
With verbal hallucinosis, a person has verbal delirium: intimidation, sacrilege, indecent vocabulary, etc. During an attack, a person loses control over himself, confusion and chaotic movements appear. At other times, hallucinations are critically evaluated by the patient himself. The age of the disease is mostly 71 years. This disease is allocated to the group "late psychosis."
With visual hallucinations, a person develops hallucinations. At first there are few of them, and they are flat, gray in color. After a few minutes, visions become larger, they acquire color and volume. The characters of hallucinations are mostly unusual living creatures, animals, less often people. The man himself is aware of his painful condition and tries not to succumb to hallucinations. Although sometimes there are situations when the images seem so realistic that the patient still follows their lead and does what he sees in them - he can talk with their heroes. Mostly sick people from 81 years.
With tactile hallucinosis, there are complaints of burning and itching on the skin, as well as sensations, as if from bites. The patient thinks that ticks and bugs are crawling over his skin, or that he feels sand on his body or stones. Visual images are often added to the sensations: he sees ants crawling on himself, etc. A sick person wants to remove the discomfort with all his might: he rinses his hands all the time, consults a skin doctor, etc. These hallucinations are observed at the age from 49 to 66 years.
Hallucinatory-paranoid conditions
With this psychosis, hallucinatory syndrome and paranoid are combined. The disease appears at the age of 60, lasts about 16 years. Clinical manifestations proceed like schizophrenia: a person hears voices, sees images, performs incomprehensible actions. The memory is stored in the initial period of the disease. Noticeable violations become in the later stages.
Confabulation
Typical disorders of the elderly, so to speak, especially senile age. In this case, the patient shows a complete restructuring of the personality, and real and fictional events are confused. The man believes that he knows the president and is friends with some celebrity. From this arises megalomania.
Pathology develops at the age of 71 years. Memory is not immediately violated.
Naturally, the destruction of the psyche is considered an inevitable process in old age, and yet it causes great suffering to both the person himself and his relatives. But no matter how difficult it is, we must try to fill the remaining years of life of sick people with warmth and love.
How to treat senile psychosis
Senile psychosis is a serious illness, and the doctor must decide whether the patient should be placed in a hospital. Of course, the consent of relatives is required. Before starting treatment, the doctor carefully examines the patient in order to identify his general condition, determine the type of psychosis and severity, the presence of somatic diseases.
If a person has a depressive disorder, then psychotropic drugs such as “Pyrazidol” are prescribed, etc. Sometimes several drugs are combined in certain dosages. For other types of psychosis, drugs like Propazin, Sonapaksa, etc. are necessary. With any variant of psychosis, corrective agents are prescribed, for example Cyclodolum.
Treatment is always chosen with an individual approach. Along the way, correction of somatic disorders is carried out.
Treatment can be carried out both in specialized psychiatric clinics, and in ordinary hospitals, because psychosis can occur against the background of some diseases.
The most favorable prognosis is given for acute variants of psychoses. And what are the chances of recovery in a chronic course? Unfortunately, the prognosis is poor. All drugs only slow down the course of the pathology for a while. Therefore, relatives need to be patient, calm and loyal. After all, dementia is an integral stage in the life of every person.
What is the life expectancy in people with senile psychoses, no one will say for sure. But on average, doctors give such patients from 6 to 11 years, depending on the state of the human body.
Conclusion
Well, we’ve figured out what senile dementia is. Symptoms, treatment (how many people live with this condition, we also indicated) depend on the type of pathology and the presence of concomitant somatic diseases. The reader can now reasonably evaluate what to expect from such an illness.