If effective medical treatment for depression is given, this can aid in the distinction between<unk>  and dementia. Antidepressants have been found to assist in the elimination of cognitive dysfunction associated with depression, whereas cognitive dysfunction associated with true dementia continues along a steady gradient. In cases where antidepressant therapy is not well tolerated, patients can consider electroconvulsive therapy as a possible alternative. However, studies have revealed that patients who displayed cognitive dysfunction related to depression eventually developed dementia later on in their lives. The development of treatments for dementia has not been as fast as those for depression. Thus far, cholinesterase inhibitors are the most popular drug used to slow the progression of the Alzheimer's disease (most frequent dementia) and improves cognitive function for a period of time. Vortioxetine, an SSRI with a novel pharmacology recently approved for major depressive disorder, has emerged as a promising potential treatment for the cognitive symptoms of depression. In preclinical animal studies and in large-scale randomized controlled trials, vortioxetine has been found to significantly improve cognition in remitted depressed patients, independent of its antidepressant effect. In clinical trials, significant improvements were identified in working memory, processing speed, executive function and attention in participants treated with vortioxetine. MRI studies showed that vortioxetine modulates a circuit subserving working memory, in a direction opposite to changes observed in major depression. Studies also showed that vortioxetine stimulates growth of dendritic spines and synaptic connections in vitro, and stimulates gene expression of factors involved in neuroplasticity, hinting at possible biological mechanisms underlying its pro-cognitive effects in both depressed patients and healthy controls.
Pseudodementia
Procidentia
Subcortical dementia
Semantic dementia
Dementia
Vascular dementia
Early-onset Alzheimer's disease
Alcohol-related dementia