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Home > Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences > Publications > White Papers

Memory White Paper

Johns Hopkins Medicine - Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

THE JOHNS HOPKINS WHITE PAPERS

MEMORY - 2008
by Peter V. Rabins, M.D., M.P.H.

Click here to order this White Paper.

Excerpts below

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR
SENIOR MOMENTS OR WORRISOME MEMORY LAPSES

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Peter V. Rabins, M.D., M.P.H., received his medical degree from Tulane University School of Medicine and his degree in public health (M.P.H.) from the Tulane University School of Public Health. He completed his residency in psychiatry at the University of Oregon. Currently, he is codirector of the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neuropsychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, as well as a professor of psychiatry with a joint appointment in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Rabins is serving as the principal investigator on a National Institute of Mental Health study of Alzheimer’s disease in the community and a National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke study of late-stage care for Alzheimer’s disease patients.

Dr. Rabins has spent his career studying psychiatric disorders in the elderly. His current research includes the development of scales to measure impairment in people with severe dementia and the study of visual hallucinations in a variety of psychiatric and neurological conditions. He has published extensively in such journals as the American Journal of Psychiatry, the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, and the Journal of Mental Health.

LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR

Dear Reader:
Welcome to the 2008 Memory White Paper—your Johns Hopkins guide to the prevention, diagnosis, and management of memory problems, from mild cognitiveimpairment to Alzheimer’s disease. You will find helpful advice whether you have one of these illnesses or are caring for someone with memory issues.

This year’s highlights include:

• Signs that reveal whether it’s a senior moment, mild cognitive impairment, or dementia.
• How to maintain a brain-friendly lifestyle.
• Studies show that fish may really be brain food.
• The latest on the link between diabetes and cognitive decline.
• Tips on tapping into the remaining strengths of people with dementia.
• The medications that can muddle memory.
• New research connects delirium and dementia.
• The ABCs of advances in brain imaging.
• The latest help for verbal repetition.
• New frontiers in Alzheimer’s research.
• Caring for the caregiver: A crucial but often neglected part of Alzheimer’s treatment.

If you have any memory–related queries you want answered in the White Papers, or comments about the White Papers in general, please e-mail the editors at whitepapers@johnshopkinshealthalerts.com.

Wishing you the best of health in 2008,

Sincerely,
Peter V. Rabins, M.D., M.P.H.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Biology of Memory
Age-Associated Memory Impairment
Preventing Dementia
Mild Cognitive Impairment
Dementia
Reversible Memory Loss
Irreversible Dementias
Alzheimer’s Disease
Coping With Caregiving

Chart: Medications for Treating Alzheimer’s Disease 2008
Glossary
Health Information Organizations and Support Groups
Leading Hospitals for Neurology and Neurosurgery
Index

Excerpt from page 9

Distinguishing Normal "Senior Moments" From More Worrisome Memory Lapses
Occasional memory lapses, such as forgetting why you walked into a room or having difficulty recalling a person’s name, become more common as we approach our 50s and 60s. It’s comforting to know that this minor forgetfulness is a normal sign of aging, not a sign of dementia. But other types of memory loss, such as forgetting appointments or becoming momentarily disoriented in a familiar place, may indicate mild cognitive impairment. In the most serious form of memory impairment—dementia—people often find themselves disoriented in time and place and unable to name common objects or recognize once-familiar people. The chart below gives examples of the types of memory problems common in normal age-related forgetfulness, mild cognitive impairment, and dementia.
Normal Age-Related Forgetfulness	Mild Cognitive Impairment	Dementia
Sometimes misplaces keys, eyeglasses, or other items.	Frequently misplaces items.	Forgets what an item is used for or puts it in an inappropriate place.
Momentarily forgets an acquaintance’s name.	Frequently forgets people’s names and is slow to recall them.	May not remember knowing a person.
Occasionally has to “search” for a word.	Has more difficulty finding words.	Begins to lose language skills. May withdraw from social interaction.
Occasionally forgets to run an errand.	Begins to forget important events and appointments.	Loses sense of time. Doesn’t know what day it is.
May forget an event from the distant past.	May forget more recent events or newly learned information.	Has serious impairment of shortterm memory. Has difficulty learning and remembering new information.
When driving, may momentarily forget where to turn. Quickly orients self.	May temporarily become lost more often. May have trouble understanding and following a map.	Becomes easily disoriented or lost in familiar places, sometimes for hours.
Jokes about memory loss.	Worries about memory loss. Family and friends notice the lapses.	May have little or no awareness of cognitive problems.

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