To think what's going on with dm

[Clappingforjoy]

My DM is 86 years old and her memory hasnt been so good the last few months but nothing that you wouldn't expect from somebody of her age but things have been happening over the last 2 months or so which have gradually got more strange as time goes on and it's getting very concerning.
Mostly its evolving around hallucinations really weird ones at times.
She claims she has seen my dad who passed away 2 years ago to her sister who died 6 weeks ago sitting and wondering around her house.
Today I visited and she was pointing at the cushions on the sofa and saying there is a presence under then and that they had been moving.she claimed to have seen a white figure standing by the chair with a smile on its face and that the police where at the end of her driveway at 1am in the morning with a lost girl.
After I left for work today she phoned my sister to say I was still there and that I was fast asleep and she couldn't wake me and I would be late for work.
She has mentioned having a zombie in the house, a scarf changing into a cat etc the list goes on.
I guess I'm looking for some insight into what on earth is going on she also keeps having falls.
Please help we are waiting for her to have blood tests.

Sorry to say it may be the start of a dementia type illness. My mum sadly has vascular dementia and did say things like this at the start. However, it is a must to get urinary infections ruled out, it very commonly causes hallucinations and apparent dementia in patients who don’t have it. So get her to the docs and take a sample with you. And hugs as it is hard to deal with.

She is halfway through antibiotics for a UTI

We took her to the docs and she had a memory test and it was fine. The doctor recommended bereavement counselling as she has lost alot of family within the last 2 years and ordered the blood tests and a visit from falls prevention

A UTI in the elderly can cause havoc (I work in the care industry) so if she has had a memory test already I'd be tempted to put it down to that until it clears up. If its still going on after the UTI has gone then go back to the doctors to make sure there is nothing else going on.

My dm passes the memory test despite dementia,

Tread carefully and keep an eye. We were often fobbed off with delirium due to UTI... took a long time to get our mum tested for memory loss. She had dementia.

My Dad got like this with Alzheimer's. He used to see children "doffing their caps" to him, big ladybirds on the wall and bizarrely toilet rolls on the floor.
But I agree, a uti can do this too.

With the elderly, they often treat first for UTI and if that doesn’t work, then they assume it’s dementia. If it’s happening quickly, it may be vascular - especially if it comes and goes.

It certainly could be due to delirium caused by the UTI, which can cause confusion and hallucinations. The symptoms of delirium can last much longer than the UTI.
Was the memory test done by the GP. These tests tend to be brief screening tests and they are unreliable. Making a diagnosis of dementia involves taking a full history and more extensive cognitive testing.
There are various types of dementia. Lewy body dementia presents with hallucinations and falls more-so than obvious memory loss. However it would be very difficult to make a diagnosis until the delirium has settled

I would wonder about delirium too. Very common to get delirium with an infection in older people, especially water infections. Question - when she refers to the hallucinations is she scared? Or is she matter of fact about them?

My mum has gone really weird a couple of times when she’s had a UTI. Keep a careful eye on whether it’s under control/clearing up.

My mum had vascular dementia and had hallucinations like you describe. She was hospitalised after a fall and it was thought she had a UTI. She had antibiotics for it but in truth and in retrospect I think it was the dementia. While she was in hospital she was very confused, the unfamiliarity of the situation was very difficult for her. She appeared better once she was back home in familiar surroundings, but the dementia progressed over the following year or so. She had twice daily care workers for a while but that wasn’t enough and she moved in with my DB and SIL for her last few months.

Obviously each case is different and your DM may simply have a UTI.

Memory test was done by the gp but it was quick and brief.
She is convinced on what she sees and will not be told otherwise says she isnt stupid etc.
Doesnt seem terrified by it but says it's making her a bit nervous.

Is she drinking enough? When my elderly mum had a UTI and wasn’t drinking enough (because she hoped she wouldn’t have to go to the loo as often, if she restricted her fluids), she became delirious, and ended up in hospital.

Several older people in my family have had this and it turned out to be a uti. However when my mum had it a few years ago turned out to be an in balance her mineral and salt levels due to a d+v bug weeks earlier.

There's an eye condition that can cause hallucinations but I can't remember what its called.

The eye condition is Charles bonnet syndrome. It wouldn’t affect the memory though

The diagnosis for Lewy Body Dementia is more difficult - PET scan may help. The hallucinations and balance are definitely symptoms of LBD and more prominent in this type of dementia at the beginning stages than memory difficulties.

My mum had dementia and was given some tablets which were meant to slow down the progress but unfortunately she had hallucinations as a side affect

Nobody can really say OP but whatever is going on, it's really tough for you and your DM.

My DGM has Parkinsons and dementia, she does have hallucinations but they don't make her frightened she just sees or imagines things and people that aren't there. She has also had UTIs that cause her hallucinations to be worse, though the underlying cause is the dementia.

The best thing you can do given this and also the falls is to get her properly assessed by a doctor and to make arrangements to ensure she's safe at home, or if necessary that she gets carers arranged or a move to somewhere with 24 hour care if she needs it.

Glad it was just a UTI! They often cause hallucinations in the elderly and can easily go under- or undiagnosed, so it's the first thing they test for when this sort of thing comes out of the blue. We had this with our late mum who was sharp as a tack usually.

Your DM's had a really rough ride and you've had a nasty scare! I hope she bounces back and is 100% well before Christmas so you can enjoy each other's company.