As the old song goes, “memories sweeten through the ages just like wine” but they also can become fleeting. Probably a week doesn’t go by, without a patient expressing concerns about their memory. I’m sure if a survey was done here in Tucson, memory loss, would be one of the greatest concerns for us as we get older. I just read a very interesting, and short article in the Journal of the American Medical Association ( JAMA), about memory loss.
It made a distinction about “reversible” and “irreversible” memory loss, which is very important. Some types of memory loss like Alzheimer’s, or vascular dementia are irreversible, but other types of memory loss, can be secondary to everything from nutritional deficiencies, through infection, to hearing loss, which may be reversible. If you or a family member is concerned about memory loss, please don’t hesitate to bring it up at your next visit. We may ask some personal, and probing questions, and send you for lab tests, but it may very valuable to enjoy life to its fullest.