Question:

82 year old female with advanced Alzheimer`s. In a Personal Care Home along with twelve other dementia cases.

She is not on any medications. She has a good diet yet has persistent diarrhea. Is this condition consistent with the progression of Alzheimer`s? Should I look for other causes? The condition has lasted for several months.

Answer:

True chronic diarrhea (frequent and loose/watery stools lasting for greater than one month) is not caused by or associated with Alzheimer`s or other forms of dementia. Therefore one would presume that the diarrhea in your elderly female patient is abnormal and should be investigated further (assuming the patient is otherwise physically and mentally healthy enough to undergo the usual tests necessary to find the cause). Dementia is, however, a very common cause of fecal incontinence. Fecal incontinence is a separate problem from diarrhea and indicates the loss of voluntary control of either liquid or solid bowel movements resulting in soiling or accidents. If your patient actually has fecal incontinence and not diarrhea, this may be associated with the progression of dementia. 

For more information:

Go to the Digestive Disorders health topic.