After reading and studying this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Explain why the cognitive disorders are no longer known as "organic brain disorders."
2. Identify when a set of symptoms should be diagnosed as a cognitive disorder, and when it should not be.
3. Identify the types of cognitive impairment in dementia.
4. Describe the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.
5. Identify and describe the brain changes that occur in Alzheimer’s disease and the conditions thought to cause them.
6. Discuss the evidence for a genetic contribution to Alzheimer’s disease.
7. Describe vascular dementia and identify its causes.
8. Distinguish between penetrating injuries and closed head injuries.
9. Describe the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, HIV-associated dementia, and Huntington’s disease.
10. Discuss the available treatments for dementia.
11. Discuss how culture and gender may affect dementia.
12. Identify the symptoms of delirium, their typical progression, and the conditions that make a diagnosis likely.
13. Discuss the ways in which delirium can be treated.
14. Distinguish between anterograde and retrograde amnesia.
15. Identify how amnesic disorders may be treated.
16. Discuss older adults’ experiences of anxiety disorders, depression, and substance use disorders.