Who can determine the diagnosis on the type of Alzheimer's/dementia?

Annice, the only answer is to try and see. For some people it is. For others it isn't.

there is an excellent class, completely free, online. Google Coursera, the class just started and is taught by Johns Hopkins. The class is called Care for elders with Alzheimer's Disease and other major cognitive disorders. There are a number of us here from Agingcare taking it.

We took our mother to University of Southern California (USC) and saw a Neurologist in the Neurology Department, who diagnosed her. All we really found out was it was caused by her brain shrinking but she does not have Parkinsons,

My experience with my husband's Lewy Body Dementia might help you a bit. Originally my husband was diagnosed with Parkinson's because of a tremor. A few months later I told our doctor that his memory and personality had changed so dramatically. At this point he wasn't taking any medication. Shortly thereafter, he did start on meds for the tremor and Alzheimer's because a brain scan showed signs of Alzheimer's. My husband's then neurologist offered no testing; nothing. After a major episode last December, a visit to the ER, another totally unhelpful visit to his neurologist and finally a return visit to our PCP, we went to see a neurologist suggested by our PCP. This man spent over 2 hours with us on the initial visit...far more time than the previous neurologist did in all the visits we had with him. He asked a LOT of questions, did some basic in-office testing and sent my husband for a battery of tests over the next month or so, including testing with a neuro-psychologist. In the meantime, he stopped the Alzheimer meds and increased the Parkinson's meds which ended up being an experiment because after another month or so, he concluded...based on all the tests...that my husband had LBD not Alzheimer's or Parkinson's. The meds that he had been taking were stopped because they were making things worse, especially the hallucinations and paranoia. His meds were adjusted and he did well for a couple of months. Sadly, by the end of June, my husband's condition had deteriorated so badly. He couldn't walk. Within a month he was in the hospital with renal failure, then to a rehab to try and get him able to walk, swallow and do more. Unfortunately, my husband didn't respond. He developed a horrible wound (bed sore) which I believe had been festering for months. Only 3-1/2 months went by before my husband passed away last week. The point I want to make is this: find a neurologist that really knows his stuff. Talk to people; get on the internet; learn all you can. Observe everything that goes on with your loved one; document everything. When you see the doctor, take your notes along. Ask questions. Allow the tests to be done; they aren't invasive. It's unfortunate that we don't know more about these diseases and they can't be accurately diagnosed until closer to the end. There are so many "signs" that no one recognizes or chalks up to "old age" or something else. By the time you can get a more accurate diagnosis, it's too late. There is no cure; we can only try to make their quality of life better for whatever time they have left. Remember, it's the QUALITY that counts, not the QUANTITY.

Scared-
I am so sorry for your loss. It is certainly a journey when caring for someone, regardless of the reason.

For the question of who makes the diagnosis of dementia and which dementia it is (so far 48 different diseases have been identified and each of these have subtypes), you would look for a geriatric psychiatrist, a geriatrition (an MD specializing in aging) or a neurologist specializing in dementia.
The dementias are ordered in number of occurrence, so the largest disease group is Alzheimer's (official name is Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type or DAT) -- 4 subsets, Lewy Bodies Dementia -- 3 subsets, Vascular Dementia -- 3 subsets, Frontal Temporal Dementia -- 9 subsets, Parkinson's Dementia -- 2 subsets, Wernicke-Korsakoff Dementia (alcohol dementia), Huntington's/Huntington's Chorea -- 2 subsets, Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease, etc. This grouping of dementias account for approximately 92 percent of all the dementias.
It is recognized that different presentations of disease behaviors alert physicians to specific dementias. A full battery of testing for any dementia would include blood work specific to dementia, PET scans, EEG, EKG, CAT scans, MRI, cognitive exams, etc. Dementia is not diagnosed by a simple set of questions. (A definitive diagnosis for Alzheimer's can be made with 100 percent accuracy through a spinal tap.) For a doctor to make a diagnosis, he or she takes the symptoms presented, the results of testing, rule out everything it cannot be and the end result should be the correct disease. Without a spinal tap for DAT, the diagnosis is still considered to have a 96-98 percent accuracy if the full battery of tests were completed.
But many of the behaviors you describe would point more towards a Lewy Bodies dementia. And LBD is most commonly misdiagnosed as DAT several times before a correct diagnosis is made. LBD frequently has a Parkinson's attachment, which is not understood, but is recognized. In some people, PD presents first, followed by LBD. In other people, LBD is diagnosed first and the PD symptoms begin later. Some people do not develop the Parkinson features.
Mixed Dementia is a subset of Vascular dementia. It means damage from stroke activity (large, medium or smalls strokes or a combination of strokes) has caused Vascular dementia and now Alzheimer's has crept in as well. Therefore this dementia is a "mix" of two dementias.
It is not unusual for people to have more than one dementia. And it is not
uncommon for a person to have features of Alzheimer's as well as other dementias. Research is indicating that if a person has one form of dementia and lives long enough, Alzheimer's creeps in as well. This is believed to be due to the failure of the Tau protein found within the cell structure and this collapse of the Tau protein is common in many forms of dementia.
As for the mini mental status exam -- the MMSE, this exam was developed to check for orientation, not cognition. By the time a person scores poorly on this exam, the dementia process is typically quite advanced. Doctors continue to use this test because it is the test insurance companies recognize and pay for during the doctor's examination. A more useful testing tool is the SLUMS test or St. louis University Mental Status exam. This test was developed specifically to measure for cognition and is available to download.
By late stage five on the DBAT (dementia behavioral assessment tool) all dementias begin to be very similar. This is because the damage to the brain, regardless of the type of dementia is significant. Stage five people for example have lost 1/2 pound of brain tissue in the beginning of stage five, but a pound or so of brain tissue is gone by the end of stage five. People with two pounds or less of brain tissue tend to have similar behaviors and declines towards end of life, which is why late stage five, stage six and stage seven are about the same for any person regardless of the type of dementia.

thank you Tam

thank you jeannegibbs. My uncle died with A. I couldnt see where the medications helped much. He could function to a certain extent but was so unaware. My retired husband had demonstrated signs of A/D over the last year and I am scared. I dont know how i should proceed..what to plan etc. My mother lives with us (8 years) . She has dementia and is very OCD about her schedule.

my niece stole my dad, had him diagnosed by a neuropsychologist to have dementia .took guardianship and now controls it all. is a cognitive test and her "opinion all that's needed to claim he isn't capable of making any decisions? I have lived with him since he fell 3 years ago and now after stealing him and gaining guardianship have served me with a notice to vacate.

what tests are required to determine nos dementia? could medications, stress, depression , cause the same signs as dementia? what tests can I request to verify this diagnosis?

Tracy-
You can ask the court to order a second opinion. I just wonder how this got so out of control and niece obtaining guardianship. It may be too late without getting another attorney involved.

would removing person who's 87 years old from the home he's always lived at and keeping him from his son, his only immediate family and too much bp meds as well as other meds we had halved his dosage on[and was doing great] but is now back on, cause false results on test results administered by a neurophychologist? shouldn't a real md make this diagnosis?\

I think that a lot of factors need addressed when caring for people with these conditions. meds, environmental factors, physical health,foods, etc

apparently if you live in Arkansas a neuropsychologist and a thieving ,lying caregiver can an acquire guardianship with her testimony in court. even if she's a convicted felon with a history of meth dealing and use. and has lost custody of her kids...but in Arkansas its okay to take this kind of persons word as fact. for real

Something is wrong! Have you seen the guardianship papers? A court would never assign a felon as a guardian.

she testified against me. I have nothing but her opinion now recorded as who I am. I am college educated in the arts. never tht the law was so messed up