VIDEO: Cognitive dysfunction impacts educational efforts in patients with diabetes

In this video perspective, internist Pamela Kushner, MD, FAAFP, discusses how cognitive impairment can impact a patient’s ability to understand their health care needs.

Kushner, a clinical professor at the University of California Irvine and director of the Kushner Wellness Center, summarized her presentation at the Evolving Concepts in the Management of Diabetes and Cardiorenal Metabolic Diseases workshop held June 18 to 19 in Dallas.

“When you first look at diagnosing dementia or cognitive impairment, the first thing you want to rule out is pathogenic causes,” Kushner told Healio Primary Care. “Is there a medication that could be causing it? Is there depression that could be causing it? Is there an underlying illness that could be causing it, or a lesion in the brain?” she said.

If none of those issues are identified as the cause, the next step is to look at a patient’s daily activity levels. “Do they shower regularly? Do they brush their teeth?” Kushner said. “Can they feed themselves?

“All of this has to do with setting a baseline and deciding ‘Where can we go from here?’” she said.