Understanding dementia in relation to brain and communication disorders It is known that the elderly population in our society is increasing. With this increase comes awareness and prevalence of common health problems of older adults. Dementia is a disease commonly associated with the geriatric population. To understand dementia, you should know its symptoms, causes and various treatment options. This study focuses specifically on the relationship dementia has with brain and communication disorders. Definition of DementiaButcher, Mineka, and Hooley (2013) described dementia as a progressive disorder that shows deterioration in functioning and has a gradual onset. There are many different disorders known to cause dementia. Butcher et al. (2013) indicated that some of the causes are stroke, infectious diseases, nutritional deficiencies, head trauma and degenerative brain diseases. The most common and important cause of dementia is Alzheimer's disease (Butcher et. al., 2013). “As Alzheimer's disease progresses, neurofibrillary tangles spread throughout the brain” (National Institutes of Health, 2012). Plaques and tangles are the main features of Alzheimer's disease, along with communication problems of nerve cells within the brain. In the final stage, the damage is widespread and brain tissue has shrunk significantly (National Institutes of Health, 2012). Early Signs and Symptoms Since dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT) is often the cause of dementia in the geriatric population, symptoms, treatments, and the effectiveness of the treatments will be discussed. Dementia of the Alzheimer's type is a cognitive impairment, resulting in the inability to learn and retain new information... half of the article... Abnormal Psychology (15th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.Focht, A. (2009). Differential diagnosis of dementia. Geriatrics, 64(3), 20-26. Jootun, D., & McGhee, G. (2011). Effective communication with people with dementia.Nursing Standard, 25(25), 40-47.Lu, Der Fa,PhD., RN, & Herr, Keela, PhD, RN,AGSF, FAAN (2012). Pain in dementia: recognition and treatment. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 38(2), 8-13.doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3928/00989134-20120113-01National Institutes of Health (December 2012). What is Alzheimer's disease? Retrieved from http://nihseniorhealth.gov/alzheimersdisease/whatisalzheimersdisease/01.htmlSmith-Conway, E.R., Baker, R., Angwin, A.J., Pachana, N.A., Copland, D.A., Humphreys, M.S.… Chenery, H.J. (2012, May ). Educational strategies in dementia. (2012). Australian Nursing Journal, 19(10), 35.