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A great outcome for Caroline; who was brave enough to seek help. I'm glad she is doing well and her outcome was a great success. It's important to get other opinions when you feel something is not quite right with the outcomes you are being told.

Dr. Prakash Sampath is an amazing Neurosurgeon. I brought my mother to him, around 2006. My mother had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's but her journey was different and I felt it wasn't Alzheimer's. After a seizure and a new MRI, It turned out my Mother had NPH, Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. NPH mimics Alzheimer's to a degree, initially. But, unlike Alzheimer's, there is good hope, for those with NPH, today. Yet, for her initial years, NPH wasn't a primary focus or known facture. There has been good progress, with this disorder, the past decade.

My mother was one of the first to get a VP Shunt; in 2007, which was a relatively new procedure, back then. The outcome wasn't as good as we had hoped. However, my mother improved significant; in some ways, which improved her quality of life, for a good amount of time. Had these shunts been developed two or three years earlier; my mother might have been one of the lucky ones, who have had their lives brought back to normalcy, or at the least, the progressions severely slowed, hopefully, reversed to a higher degree.

What's important here is that doctors often diagnose Alzheimer's when dementia issues crop up.. While education has gotten better within the medical sector; many individuals are just given this blanket diagnoses. Great improvements have been achieved in the area of NPH, this past decade. And, Dr. Sampath has been a leader in that success, in my opinion.

NPH, today, If caught in the early stages, can now be reversed, with the shunt technologies available today. It's often done as an outpatient procedure, now, too. It's important, when dementia issues begin to arise, that you take your loved one to a Neurosurgeon, not just your primary or Neurologist. Timing is of utmost importance, for the best outcome. In my experience, a Neurosurgeon is far batter trained to make these determinations. That is my opinion based on my experience. I would recommend Dr. Sampath.

There are many causes for dementia, among them, B12 deficiency, low blood levels, high sugar levels, clogged arteries, kidney issues, urology issues. Bottom line, for dementia based things; I'd start with a Neurosurgeon like Dr. Sampath because dementia is, in fact, a brain disorder. So, a neurosurgeon who is more highly trained, can see what most other types of doctors, can't, in relevance to NPH, among other causes. I'd also recommend a good kidney specialist and heart specialist; before allowing to believe Alzheimer's is the cause.