Alcohol-related dementia is a form of dementia caused by long-term, excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages, resulting in neurological damage and impaired cognitive function.
Alcohol-related 'dementia' or Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome will cause them to struggle with day-to-day tasks. This is similar to someone living with dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease.
Alcoholic Dementia Life Expectancy
While there are no specific life expectancy projections for alcohol-related dementia in general, a study shows that the life expectancy for someone with Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome is eight years for 50% of people who have this form of alcohol-related brain damage.
The effects of alcohol-related dementia may be reversible, depending on your circumstances. The best way to try to reverse symptoms is to quit drinking. Research shows that cognitive impairment is partially reversible in people who abstain from drinking.
Excessive alcohol consumption over a lengthy time period can lead to brain damage, and may increase your risk of developing dementia. However, drinking alcohol in moderation has not been conclusively linked to an increased dementia risk, nor has it been shown to offer significant protection against developing dementia.
Any improvement in functioning usually occurs within the first two years after the symptoms began. Life expectancy may remain normal if the person does not drink alcohol.
Unlike Alzheimer's disease or vascular dementia, alcohol-related 'dementia' is not certain to get worse over time. With the right treatment and support, there is often a good chance that it will stop getting worse or improve.
Alcohol dementia primarily affects:
People who drink in excess over a long period of time (for women, four or more drinks in one sitting, and for men, five or more drinks in one sitting, according to the CDC)
Thankfully, some of the changes in the alcoholic brain are due to cells simply changing size in the brain. Once an alcoholic has stopped drinking, these cells return to their normal volume, showing that some alcohol-related brain damage is reversible.
Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other serious problems including: High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems. Cancer of the breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, voice box, liver, colon, and rectum.
Cognitive effects of alcohol use may include memory loss, problems with learning, dementia, and severely hindered mental functioning in most severe cases. Seeking alcohol addiction treatment is the first step in preventing or reducing the negative effects of alcohol on the brain.
WKS consists of two stages: Wernicke encephalopathy, a sudden and severe (acute) brain disorder. Korsakoff syndrome, a long-term (chronic) memory disorder.
Researchers followed 957 older adults, average age 65, who were part of the Singapore Longitudinal Aging Study. Of these, 69% drank tea on a frequent basis. After a five-year period, the researchers found that the tea drinkers had a 50% lower risk of dementia.
Keeping alcohol consumption to one or two drinks a day lessened the odds of developing dementia, according to a study of nearly 4 million South Koreans. However, drinking more than two drinks a day increased that risk, according to the study published Monday in the journal JAMA Network Open.
What Is Late-onset Alcoholism? Most older alcoholics begin problem-drinking in their teens or twenties, but a smaller cohort of drinkers avoid alcohol problems until retirement age and then succumb to problem drinking or alcoholism.
The average lifespan of an alcoholic tends to be shorter than that of the general public because heavy drinking on a regular and long-term basis can increase the risk of developing several life-threatening diseases and conditions.
Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome And End-Stage Alcoholism
Also called Wernicke Encephalopathy, this condition produces leg tremors, staggering, vision changes, and problems maintaining balance. Lastly, people are often confused and have problems staying sharp or learning new things.
Korsakoff syndrome causes problems learning new information, inability to remember recent events and long-term memory gaps. Memory difficulties may be strikingly severe while other thinking and social skills are relatively unaffected.
Thiamine deficiency is particularly important because it can exacerbate many of the other processes by which alcohol induces brain injury, as described in other articles in this issue of Alcohol Research & Health.
As with Wernicke's encephalopathy, the main treatment for Korsakoff's syndrome is to give the person high doses of thiamine immediately. They may also need to be given other types of nutrition and hydration to get their body working properly.
Alcohol-Related Dementia
ARD's symptoms include visuospatial problems (the ability to understand such things as shapes, locations, and directions), impaired working memory, slowed physical movements, and difficulties in executive function (the ability to reason and solve problems).
In the end stages of dementia (in the last few months or weeks of life), the person's food and fluid intake tends to decrease slowly over time. The body adjusts to this slowing down process and the reduced intake.