Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Preparing for your appointment
By Mayo Clinic staffPeople who have frontotemporal dementia often don't recognize that they have a problem. In many cases, family members are the ones who notice the symptoms and arrange for a doctor's appointment. Your family physician may refer you to a neurologist or psychologist for further evaluation.
What you can do
Because you may not be aware of all your signs and symptoms, it's a good idea to take a family member or close friend along with you to the doctor's appointment. You may also want to take a written a list that includes:
- Detailed descriptions of your symptoms
- Information about medical problems you've had in the past
- Information about the medical problems of your parents or siblings
- All the medications and dietary supplements you take
- Questions you want to ask the doctor
What to expect from your doctor
In addition to a physical exam, your doctor may also check your neurological health by testing your:
- Reflexes
- Muscle strength
- Muscle tone
- Senses of touch and sight
- Coordination
- Balance
During the appointment, your doctor might also conduct a brief mental status evaluation, which may assess:
- Memory
- Problem-solving abilities
- Attention span
- Counting skills
- Language usage
- Knopman DS. Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/109993418-3/771185545/1492/1426.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2805-5..50430-4--cesec84_18054. Accessed Nov. 12, 2008.
- Shadlen MF, et al. Dementia syndromes. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 12, 2008.
- NINDS frontotemporal dementia information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/picks/picks.htm. Accessed Nov. 12, 2008.
- Josephs KA. Frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Neurologic Clinics. 2007;25:683.
- Petersen R. Mayo Clinic Guide to Alzheimer's Disease. Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2006:115.
- Shadlen MF, et al. Evaluation of cognitive impairment and dementia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 12, 2008.
- Neurological diagnostic tests and procedures. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/misc/diagnostic_tests.htm. Accessed Nov. 12, 2008.
- Press D, et al. Treatment of behavioral symptoms related to dementia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Nov. 13, 2008.
