Peter Falks Rapid Alzheimer’s Decline After Surgery

I came across this story about Peter Falk while I was on Twitter.  I was and am a big Peter Falk fan.  I still watch his old movies and repeats of the old Columbo TV series that Peter Falk starred in during the 1960′s.   I even have several seasons of the Columbo TV series on DVD.  Of course I was saddened to learn that Mr. Falk had Alzheimer’s disease but I was equally disturbed about other elements of the story.

The main thing that caught my attention was this section from the Associated Press article:

The Emmy-winning actor slipped rapidly into dementia since a series of dental operations in late 2007, Dr. Stephen Read testified Monday, the final day of a two-day conservatorship hearing.

Read said it was unclear whether Falk’s condition worsened as a result of anesthesia or some other reaction to the operation.

Read first evaluated Falk in June 2008 before the actor was scheduled to undergo hip surgery. His dementia and apparent Alzheimer’s disease worsened after that procedure, and Read said the actor no longer remembers his signature role in the series “Columbo.”

The story’s focus is actually about Falk being placed in Conservatorship and family issues between Falk, his wife and daughter.  But the reason it caught my attention was the part about his mental deterioration following surgery.  I have a friend whose family experienced something similar.  Last summer her mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease but it was in early stages.  A few months later her mother fell and broke her hip and had to have hip replacement surgery.  After the surgery, her mother’s Alzheimer’s worsened.

This begs a question that I can’t answer.  What is the correlation between the rapid progression of dementia/Alzheimer’s disease and surgery.  If there is a correlation, do you weigh the value of the surgery against the value of the patient’s mental condition?  If anyone can shed some light on this, I would really appreciate the feedback (and so would my readers).

Please ignore the registration form in the comment section, I’m trying to figure out how it got there so I can remove it.

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The Fraternity of Caregivers

Family caregivers form a fraternity that only we understand and appreciate.  Former and present caregivers are all a part of this fraternity.  We understand the time commitment and sacrifice.  We understand the effects of fatigue and sleepless nights. We know that Murphy’s Law is alive and well.  Those of us who care for adults with physical disabilities have thrown out our backs and used muscles we didn’t know we had.  And those of us who care for family members with dementia know the frustration that comes when they ask us the same question five times or tell us the same thing over and over again.  We also know how it feels when they no longer know our names or who we are.

Catching Up On the Simple Things

This past Saturday I had one goal:  to catch up on my laundry.  Sounds simple, right?  Nope!  Since Gladys started having incontinence issues at night, I spend a lot of time washing her sheets, mattress pads and night clothes.  As a consequence, the rest of the laundry keeps getting pushed aside and I end up with mounds of laundry that accumulates.  So what I end up doing is washing just what Fred and I need and putting the rest off.

Non-caregivers Just Don’t Understand

As a blogger, I try to participate in a few social networks so I put an update on my Facebook page that said I was spending Saturday, trying to catch up on laundry.  One of my Facebook friends, who has three stair-step children, decided to make light of my status. She pointed out that she washes 16 loads every week and wanted to know just how much laundry do I do.

Now, fraternity members know this really isn’t a big deal; we also know how easily we can get stressed out by little things and sometimes tend to over-react to simple things. But, since I stopped to think before I replied, my reply was fairly civil with a slight edge. Here’s the kicker, the comment came from a church member and I’m the pastor’s personal assistant. And cussing is unacceptable and frowned upon by the saints. It’s especially unacceptable on the Internet where comments never disappear.

Caregivers Get It

I put a similar update on Twitter.  One of my Twitter friends who is also a caregiver replied:  LOL, how exciting, that’s what I’m doing tomorrow.  She gets it!  It’s not glamorous or exciting.  It just is what it is.  Unless we want things to get completely out of control, we stop and get ourselves organized.  We do what we need to do to maintain control of our lives.

Rant Over

OK, now that I’ve vented I feel better.  Y’all have a good day.  Want to vent about something too – fill up the comments.  Bye

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Caregivers Make a Difference On March 3rd – National Call In Day

Please make note of the following information from the National Family Caregivers Association March E-Newsletter

Make This the Year You Speak Up: Make a Phone Call on March 3

Family caregivers have a unique opportunity to make a difference on March 3 just by making a phone call. The Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities and the Leadership Council of Aging Organizations are hosting a national call-in day on March 3 to encourage our U.S. senators to include long-term services and supports in any healthcare reform effort.

Call-In Information:

When: March 3 (Between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.)

Call-In Number: 800/958-5374

When you call, you will be asked which state you are calling from and you will be connected to your senators’ offices. Below is a sample script for your use.

Hello (state name and where you are calling from). I’m calling to ask the senator to help make sure long-term services and supports are part of healthcare reform. The nation lacks a comprehensive national public-private system for financing and delivering long-term services and supports for individuals with disabilities and seniors. We need a national solution for this national problem. Please ensure long-term services and supports are included in upcoming hearings and legislation. Thank you.

ENCOURAGE ALL THE FAMILY CAREGIVERS YOU KNOW TO JOIN THE NFCA COMMUNITY OF CAREGIVERS. THERE IS NO COST! Just click here: http://thefamilycaregiver.org

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