Diagnosing dementia due to alzemier's disease : clinical perspective.

The diagnosis of dementia in Alzheimer's disease on clinical grounds is made by exclusion of other etiologies. The differential diagnoses of other subtypes considered along with dementia of Alzheimer's disease and the clinical process involved were studied in a tertiary level health care set up. Out of 39 patients with dementia admitted over 12 years it was found that a differential diagnoses of other subtype were considered along with dementia of Alzheimer's disease in 13 cases, while 15 cases had no such association. Most frequently associated category was vascular dementia in 30.8%. The clinical difficulties in differentiating dementia in Alzheimer's disease are discussed.