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Pick´s disease and the specifics of the nursing care of a patient with this disease
KOPKAŠOVÁ, Lenka
Pick's disease is a degenerative-atrophic process that primarily affects the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. Besides Alzheimer's disease, it is a lesser known form of dementia which affects people of younger age. Although the exact range of Pick's disease occurrence varies in the literature, the average reported age is between 50-60 years. The disease can change eating habits, cause emotional swings, inappropriate behaviour and sloppy appearance of the patients. The behaviour to others is often selfish, the patients are unable to listen to others and ignore their surroundings. Pick's disease is also characterized by inappropriate sexual behaviour. Globally, the number of dementia patients is still growing and according to expert guesses the increase will continue. Nursing care for patients with dementia is therefore becoming a very actual topic as dementia is called a quiet epidemic of our century. Nurses in their departments quite frequently encounter patients suffering from dementia of various origins at different stages of disability and the staff at healthcare facilities often regard these people as a burden. The aim of this thesis, which is called Pick's Disease and Specifics of Nursing Care for Patients with this Disease, is, based on the theoretical knowledge, to map definitions and diagnosis of Pick's disease, to define the needs of such a patient, and to list the most common problems in the nursing care. It focuses on people with dementia within medical facilities. For proper understanding of the problem, the thesis starts with the anatomy and physiology of the brain and the description of cognitive functions which are affected by the dementia syndrome and the definition of dementia. Based on the studied literature, dementia is divided according to various criteria. It has been found out that dividing dementia is not entirely uniform, but the essential facts and overall opinions of the authors do not diverge. Pick's disease belongs to a group of frontotemporal dementia and its position in this group has changed over time, as it is recorded in the literature. The thesis includes recommendations resulting from the studied literature in the approach to patients with dementia and emphasizes personal communication with the patients and empathetic and humane approach. Although medicine cannot prevent dementia, an early diagnosis of a specific type of dementia and correctly targeted treatment can increase the quality of life not only of the patients but also of their families. I have chosen this topic because I find it very current and interesting. During my nursing practice at the Surgery Department and Aftercare Department, I have met patients suffering from dementia and I did not know how to properly and efficiently communicate with them. For the theoretical part of my work, the methods of explanation, synthesis and induction on the basis of Czech and foreign information sources have been used. The most frequently quoted Czech authors in my thesis are doc. MD. Roman Jirák, PhD., the head of the center for diagnosis and therapy of Alzheimer's disease at the psychiatric clinic of the General University Hospital in Prague, the 1st Medical Faculty of Charles University. This thesis can serve as an informational and educational source both for nurses and the general public who may experience the disease within their families. It would be considered a great success if it helped nurses or family members to diagnose Pick's disease or other dementia at an early stage.
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