A case reported in BMJ Case Reports describes a 61-year-old woman who was initially believed to have dementia after a five-year decline in her mental health and behaviour. She developed severe confusion, hallucinations, seizures, and marked personality changes, which included distressing behaviour such as speaking to unseen figures and acting inappropriately in public. Early brain scans and neurological tests did not show the usual signs of degenerative dementia, so she was treated symptomatically, but her condition continued to worsen. When she was later assessed by psychiatry specialists in Lisbon, blood tests revealed a severe vitamin B12 deficiency. This had led to pernicious anaemia, a condition where the body cannot absorb enough B12. Vitamin B12 is essential for healthy nerve function and the maintenance of the myelin sheath, the protective coating around nerves. Because of this deficiency, her nervous system had been significantly affected, producing symptoms that closely mimicked dementia and epilepsy. Once she began B12 injections and appropriate medical treatment, her condition improved dramatically. Over time, her hallucinations resolved, her thinking cleared, and she regained independence in daily life. Vitamin B12 deficiency is known to cause neurological and psychiatric symptoms in some cases, and while severe presentations like this are uncommon, doctors stress the importance of checking for reversible causes when patients show signs of cognitive decline because, in some situations, treatment can lead to major or even full recovery.
Life event that changes all: Horse riding accident in Zimbabwe in 1993, a fractured skull et al including bipolar anxiety, chronic fatigue …. co-morbidities (Nietzche 'He who has the reason why can deal with any how' details my health history from 1993 to date). 17th 2017 August operation for breast cancer (no indications just an appointment came from BreastCheck through the Post). Trinity College Dublin Business Economics and Social Studies (but no degree) 1997-2003; UCD 1997/1998 night classes) essays, projects, writings. Trinity Horizon Programme 1997/98 (Centre for Women Studies Trinity College Dublin/St. Patrick's Foundation (Professor McKeon) EU Horizon funded: research study of 15 women (I was one of this group and it became the cornerstone of my journey to now 2017) over 9 mth period diagnosed with depression and their reintegration into society, with special emphasis on work, arts, further education; Notes from time at Trinity Horizon Project 1997/98; Articles written for Irishhealth.com 2003/2004; St Patricks Foundation monthly lecture notes for a specific period in time; Selection of Poetry including poems written by people I know; Quotations 1998-2017; other writings mainly with theme of social justice under the heading Citizen Journalism Ireland. Letters written to friends about life in Zimbabwe; Family history including Michael Comyn KC, my grandfather, my grandmother's family, the O'Donnellan ffrench Blake-Forsters; Moral wrong: An acrimonious divorce but the real injustice was the Catholic Church granting an annulment – you can read it and make your own judgment, I have mine. Topics I have written about include annual Brain Awareness week, Mashonaland Irish Associataion in Zimbabwe, Suicide (a life sentence to those left behind); Nostalgia: Tara Hill, Co. Meath.
canisgallicus 