Have you ever wondered, “Do I have dementia? I don’t remember where I put my keys.”

There are many symptoms that lead one to wonder if such is the case. However, many of these are normal occurrences with our busy lives and aging population. So just what is dementia? It is a term that describes a group of symptoms caused by changes in brain functioning.

These symptoms include becoming lost in familiar places, asking the same questions repeatedly, having difficulty following directions, becoming disoriented about time, people and places, and neglecting personal safety, nutrition and hygiene.

People with dementia lose their abilities at different rates. Dementia can be caused by many conditions. Some of these conditions can be reversed while others cannot. The two most common types of dementia in older people are Alzheimer’s disease and multi-infarct dementia or vascular dementia. These two types cannot be reversed or cured. Reversible causes of dementia can result from a high fever, dehydration, vitamin deficiency and poor nutrition, reaction to medications, thyroid problems, or a head injury. Early treatment can prevent these conditions from becoming more serious.

While some change in memory is normal as one grows older, symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease are more than simple lapses in memory. People with Alzheimer’s experience difficulties communicating, learning, thinking and reasoning—problems severe enough to have an impact on an individual’s work, social activities and family life.

Symptoms include memory loss, difficulty performing familiar tasks or problems with language. Everyone has trouble finding the right word sometimes, but the person with Alzheimer’s disease often forgets simple words or substitutes unusual words, making it difficult to understand his speech. Other symptoms are decreased or poor judgment and difficulty with abstract thinking. Changes in personality and mood or behavior also are seen. A person may be disorientated to time and place. Again, it is normal to forget the day of the week or where one is going, but people with Alzheimer’s disease can become lost on their own street or forget where they are or how they got there—or how to get back home. Another symptom is misplacing things such as putting an iron in the freezer or a wristwatch in the sugar bowl.

Another symptom is loss of initiative. It’s normal to tire of housework, business activities or social obligations at times. The person with Alzheimer’s disease may become very passive, sitting in front of the television for hours, sleeping more than usual, or not wanting to do usual activities.

Screening for Alzheimer’s disease is coming to Wilshire on April 16.