In honor of World Alzheimer's month, it seemed fitting to address a question that I am frequently asked by both patients and their family members alike. Namely, what exactly is dementia and how is it different from Alzheimer's disease? Let's start with the first part of this question. Dementia is a general term that encompasses a number of different symptoms, two of which broadly include (1) problems with your memory and thinking skills and (2) difficulty completing activitie