Reader Worried about Her Cognition After Repeated Infections

Dear Carol: I’m a 66-year-old, well-educated woman who has had multiple health challenges and many surgeries. Since I ushered my mother through her years with Alzheimer’s, I’m vigilant about checking on my own cognitive changes, real or perceived. I recently went through a series of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and a bout of pneumonia. Although I’ve recovered physically, I feel that I’ve lost ground cognitively. I believe there are some treatments available to relatively younger people who might have Alzheimer’s pathology. What are your thoughts about testing under these circumstances? Should I see a neurologist? I’m skittish about it because I don’t want a false positive, but I do want some insight into what’s going on. Thanks for your thoughts. – PY

Dear PY: Kudos to you for your obvious understanding of how illness can affect the cognition of older adults. You sound like you’re doing very well, but it’s prudent to be aware of changes. Our bodies take hits over the years that can weaken both physical and cognitive defenses. Illnesses such as you describe can set back an older person to a point that, while they mostly recover, they never quite get back to their baseline. As you noted, genetics is also part of the picture. Before you rush to a neurologist…

Continue reading on Inforum for the full column on aging and cognitive vulnerability after illness:

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