TERMINAL DEMENTIA Meaning and
Definition
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Terminal dementia refers to the advanced stage of a chronic neurodegenerative disease that severely affects cognitive function and overall mental abilities. It is characterized by a progressive deterioration of brain function, leading to severe memory loss, impaired judgment, personality changes, and a significant decline in daily functioning. This condition is often considered as the end-stage of various forms of dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, or frontotemporal dementia.
In terminal dementia, individuals often exhibit profound confusion, disorientation, and a loss of recognition of both people and familiar surroundings. Basic skills like reasoning, problem-solving, and communication become extremely challenging, and individuals may struggle to perform even simple tasks such as eating, dressing, or bathing. The disintegration of cognitive abilities is accompanied by marked changes in behavior, including agitation, aggression, and emotional disturbances.
Due to the extensive impairment of cognitive and physical functions, individuals with terminal dementia become highly dependent on others for their daily care and typically require specialized medical attention. As the term "terminal" implies, this stage usually indicates a serious decline in health and functioning, with a limited life expectancy. Palliative care, which aims to enhance comfort and quality of life, becomes an essential aspect of management during this period, focusing on the relief of symptoms, emotional support, and care coordination.
In summary, terminal dementia represents the late-stage of progressive neurodegenerative diseases, causing severe cognitive decline, functional impairment, and necessitating specialized care in order to maximize comfort and quality of life for affected individuals.
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A practical medical dictionary. By Stedman, Thomas Lathrop. Published 1920.
Common Misspellings for TERMINAL DEMENTIA
- rerminal dementia
- ferminal dementia
- germinal dementia
- yerminal dementia
- 6erminal dementia
- 5erminal dementia
- twrminal dementia
- tsrminal dementia
- tdrminal dementia
- trrminal dementia
- t4rminal dementia
- t3rminal dementia
- teeminal dementia
- tedminal dementia
- tefminal dementia
- tetminal dementia
- te5minal dementia
- te4minal dementia
- terninal dementia
- terkinal dementia
Etymology of TERMINAL DEMENTIA
The term "terminal dementia" is a compound phrase composed of two words: "terminal" and "dementia".The word "terminal" comes from the Latin word "terminus", meaning "end" or "boundary". In English, it typically refers to a point at the ends of a transportation system, like a train terminal or airport terminal. In the medical context, however, "terminal" is used to describe an irreversible condition with a poor prognosis and impending death.The word "dementia" originates from the Latin word "dementis", which means "madness" or "insanity". It is derived from the root "de", meaning "out of", and "mens", meaning "mind". Dementia is a general term used for a group of symptoms characterized by a decline in cognitive abilities (such as memory loss, thinking skills, and problem-solving) that are severe enough to interfere with daily functioning and quality of life.
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