Hubby and I just came back from the hospital where we had to admit my 91 year old mil into the ER. She could barely shuffle her way down the hall from her bedroom to her easy chair in the living room this morning, and she was speaking jibberish to us. She forgot that she wore glasses, and refused to wear them. While she normally has a very healthy appetite, she would not eat or drink anything, and still hasn't today.
While in the hospital, she came in and out of delirium. One moment, she spoke perfect English, the next she spoke complete jibberish that no one could understand. She thinks my husband, (her son) is her brother, and she calls me the cat's name. Has anybody experienced anything like this? I'm concerned that there is more to this and the doctors just can't find anything else.
If MIL is diagnosed with UTI, try to remember her symptoms leading up to it. This way you have an idea of it's baaaaack....
My Dad is 81 with dementia that fluctuates from his usual mild to severe with delirium and delusions when there is a UTI present.
We have been battling this vicious pattern for 2 years.
Yesterday we just went through our 2nd cystoscopy in 3 months to try to get to the cause of them :(
Try to make sure that your elder is drinking fluids......very important.....even eating will get fluids in them.....this may be easier for you than it was for me, as mom didn't like water, couldn't drink carbonated beverages, no caffeine or tea. I gave her Kool-Aid, tang, crystal lite.....now those little squirt bottles can flavor their water right away.....and try to keep track of how much they drink.
She now has cranberry juice every morning and the occurances of an UTI have diminished.
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