Dementia & Geriatric Psychiatry · OPD
Forgetfulness in old age is not always 'just age'.
Dementia is a progressive decline in memory, language, judgement and daily function — most commonly Alzheimer's disease or vascular dementia. Ordinary ageing slows recall; dementia interferes with cooking, banking, medication and finding the way home. Some memory problems in the elderly are caused by thyroid disease, B12 deficiency, depression, medication or sleep apnoea, and these can improve substantially once treated — which is why assessment matters even when the diagnosis feels obvious.
Manas Neuropsychiatry Hospital · Bhavnagar
Roughly one in ten cases of memory loss has a treatable cause. Everyone deserves to be checked.
Symptoms
How it actually shows up.
Memory & thinking
- Repeating the same question or story within minutes
- Forgetting recent events while remembering the distant past
- Difficulty handling money, bank work or medication
- Losing the way on familiar roads
- Struggling to find words, or using the wrong word
- Misplacing objects and then accusing others of theft
Behaviour & mood (what families find hardest)
- Suspiciousness towards a spouse, son or daughter-in-law
- Restlessness, wandering and confusion that worsens after sunset
- Day–night reversal and disturbed sleep for the whole household
- Irritability, shouting or hitting out when helped with bathing
- Seeing people or animals that are not there
- Apathy, tearfulness and withdrawal — often late-life depression alongside
- Neglect of hygiene, or repeated unsafe acts such as leaving the gas on
Why it happens
Causes we look for before prescribing.
- Alzheimer's disease — the commonest cause
- Vascular dementia from strokes, uncontrolled blood pressure and diabetes
- Lewy body and frontotemporal dementias, and Parkinson's disease
- Reversible contributors we always check: thyroid disease, B12 and folate deficiency, anaemia, sodium imbalance, sleep apnoea, chronic alcohol use, depression and sedative medication
- Head injury and chronic kidney or liver disease
Our treatment approach
What treatment at Manas actually involves.
Cognitive assessment & scans
Structured memory testing, a full medication review and blood tests, with a CT or MRI where indicated — so the type of dementia and any treatable contributor is identified rather than assumed.
Treating what can be reversed
Thyroid correction, B12 replacement, stopping sedatives, controlling blood pressure and diabetes, and treating late-life depression — which can mimic dementia entirely.
Cognitive enhancers where appropriate
Medicines such as donepezil or memantine can slow decline and help function in suitable patients. We are honest about what they can and cannot do.
Managing behaviour without over-sedating
Sunset restlessness, suspiciousness and aggression are first addressed with routine, light, hearing and vision correction and simple environmental changes; medication is used at the lowest dose and reviewed, since elderly brains are sensitive.
Caregiver training & support
The family carries most of this illness. We teach practical handling of repeated questions, bathing refusal, wandering and night-time confusion — and we watch for caregiver burnout and depression, which is extremely common.
Safety & legal planning
Guidance on stopping driving, gas and door safety, financial protection, and documentation for guardianship or disability benefits where needed.
Please read this
Sudden confusion developing over hours or days is usually delirium — from infection, dehydration, low sodium or a medication — and is a medical emergency, not dementia. Get it assessed immediately.
Frequently asked
Questions we are asked every week.
Treatment begins with one consultation.
OPD Mon – Sat, 9 AM – 8 PM at Kalanala, Bhavnagar. No referral needed. Emergency support 24×7.