UPDATE...

Sis has been tested and tested and they know what it's not. It's not CJD or Pick's (the worst of the worst). Trouble is they still aren't sure what it is. BIL recently changed sis to another neurologist and he suggested testing for encephalitis. I'm not sure why the two spinal taps didn't show this if it is the case...but then I'm not a doc and so I'll leave it to them.

Sis has been a bit better since she came home. BIL took her to their doc and he took her off some of the heavier meds that they had her on in the hospital...to control her, I guess. She needs constant attention and so BIL has her in an adult day care. Sis thinks she is working there and she "helps" care for the other clients who have different stages of dimentia due to aging and/or disease.

At one point she thought she was pregnant and talked of having her baby girl soon. I guess she'd forgotten she had a hysterectomy over a year ago and can no longer have a baby. She's mentioning the baby less and less lately. We didn't stop her from talking about her pregnancy because we didn't see that it was harming her in any way to believe it. It actually seemed to soothe her.

Well anyway...we aren't sure of the cause of her dimentia and we don't know her prognosis but we have hope that she may recover fully or at least to a functional level. It doesn't seem to be fatal like we intially thought, but we still can't be sure. She seems more focused now and BIL says she seems to get better every day. There are some days that are worse than others but BIL is such a rock and he is dealing with her in the most loving way anyone can.

What the future holds is a mystery for sis for now. But then...isn't life a mystery anyway?

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers!

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Minds are like parachutes. They only work when they are open.

~Thomas Dewar~

Thanks for the update, Lixy. It doesn't sound like she's out of the woods but that is the best news since this thread was started.

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As long as they keep on eliminating what it isn't, I suppose that's making progress...eventually they'll narrow it down to something...have a big hug out of petty cash in the meantime, (((Lixy)))

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Plug me into somethin'

If the theory does not conform to the facts, then the facts must be discarded.

No good deed ever goes unpunished

Never argue with an idiot. He'll drag you down to his level, & beat you with experience.

(((((Lixy)))))

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Life is too short not to love and be loved....preferably multiple times in one night.

I think men talk to women so they can sleep with them and women sleep with men so they can talk to them. ~ Jay McInerney