Vision Changes and Dementia

One of the unfortunate frequent occurrences with Alzheimer's and dementia is declining peripheral vision.  While those with macular degeneration are familiar with losing straight vision and keeping the peripheral vision, with dementia it is the opposite.  As time progresses a "tunnel vision" effect begins to occur and a straightforward gaze is frequent. Perception and depth begin to change and while putting the words to what is occurring or knowing what to do as these changes occur can be difficult, it is important to be aware of them.  Simple changes can make a big difference.  First, do not walk up behind or from the side of someone with these vision changes.  It can be frightening and he or she may be easily startled.  Do your best to get directly in front of of the person and softly approach.  When feeding, be sure to bring the food up directly in front of him or her so that they are prompted by the visual field that food is coming to their mouth.  If you are sitting next to the person and bring the food in on the fork from the side, he or she might never see the food coming towards the mouth and may struggle with the spatial awareness as well. When at that point of care, every bite can make a difference in caloric intake.

These perceptual changes are also why persons with dementia may react strongly to color and boundary changes in the flooring and environment.  They lose spatial awareness, but are capable of seeing that there are changes in color, etc. in front of them.  This may cause confusion and you may experience watching them try to take a step up, as on a stair, with changes from hard flooring to carpet, etc.  Working with an occupational and physical therapist during these changes can be very helpful as a therapist can develop a specialized program for your loved one to help maintain skills or prompt responses for necessary tasks.  Fully utilize home health care for such needs with agencies such as +Amedisys+, that have fully staffed nursing and therapy care that can come directly to the home and help work within your loved one's practical environment and daily needs.