What is dementia?
While dementia is a progressive disease with no cure (currently), there are things we can do to keep cognitive abilities and prevent additional loss.
There is some evidence to show we can actually improve skills- but this is very specific to the individual and the nature of their illness.
Dementia describes losses in mental processes that goes beyond what is expected with aging. The diagnostic term is now "Major Neurocognitive Disorder" (MND).
Losses are seen in the areas of:
-attention (i.e. reduced ability to direct, focus, sustain, and shift attention).
-awareness (reduced orientation to the environment).
-cognition (e.g. memory deficit, disorientation,
language. visuospatial ability, or perception).
To learn more about these, visit our symptoms page.
References Dementia. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dementia. Accessed 8/10/2026.