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Cognitive disorders affect learning, memory, perception, and problem solving. The most direct cognitive disorders are amnesia, dementia and delirium. Anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and psychotic disorders can also have an effect on cognitive and memory functions but are not classified in the DSM-IV-TR. Causes vary between the different types of disorders but most include damage to the memory portions of the brain  .Treatments depend on how the disorder is caused. Medication and therapies are the most common treatments, for some types of disorders such as certain types of amnesia, treatments can suppress the symptoms but there is currently no cure.

Classifications
In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision ( DSM-IV-TR), which describes 250 disorders and their symptoms, cognitive disorders are classified under a psychological disorder in axis I. It is described as disorders with “a significant impairment of cognition or memory that represents a marked deterioration from a previous level of function”. The three main areas outlined by the DSM-IV-TR of cognitive disorders are delirium, dementia, and amnesia, there are many sub categories in each of these areas as well.

Delirium
Delirium is a disorder that makes situational awareness and processing new information very difficult for those diagnosed. It usually has a high rate of onset ranging from minutes to hours and sometimes days, but it does not last for very long, only a few hours to weeks. Delirium can also be accompanied by a shift in attention, mood swings, violent or unordinary behaviors and hallucinations. It can also be fatal if it is caused by a preexisting medical condition .Dementia during a hospital stay can result in a longer stay and more risk of complications and long terms stays. •	Delirium due to a general medical condition •	Substance intoxication delirium •	Substance withdrawal delirium •	Delirium due to multiple etiologies •	Delirium NOS

Dementia
Dementia is known as a genetic or trauma induced disorder that erases part or all of the patient’s memory. It is usually associated with but not restricted to the elderly. It is also usually accompanied by another cognitive dysfunction. For non-reversible causes of dementia such as age, the slow decline of memory and cognition is lifelong. It can be diagnosed by screening tests such as the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). •	Dementia of the Alzheimer’s type •	Vascular dementia •	Dementia due to a general medical condition •	Substance- induced persisting dementia •	Dementia due to multiple etiologies •	Dementia NOS

Amnesia
Amnesia patients have trouble retaining long term memories. Difficulty creating new long term memories is called anterograde amnesia and is caused by damage to the hippocampus part of the brain which is a major part of the memory process. Retrograde amnesia is also caused by damage to the hippocampus but the memories that were encoded or in the process of being encoded in long term memory are erased •	Amnestic disorder due to a general medical condition •	Substance-induced persisting amnestic disorder •	Amnestic disorder NOS

Delirium
Delirium can be caused by the worsening of previous medial conditions, abuse of medications or drugs, alcohol or drug withdrawals, mental illness, severe pain, immobilization, and sleep deprivation.

Dementia
Dementia can have numerous causes; genetics, brain trauma, stroke, and heart issues. The main causes are diseases such as Alzheimer disease, Parkinson disease, and Huntington disease because they affect or deteriorate brain functions.

Amnesia
Amnesia can be caused by concussions, traumatic brain injuries, post- traumatic stress, and alcoholism. Many problems are caused by damage to major memory encoding parts of the brain such as the hippocampus.

Delirium
Before Delirium treatment the cause must be established. Medication such as antipsychotics or benzodiazepines can help reduce the symptoms for some cases. For alcohol or malnourished cases vitamin B supplements are recommended and for extreme cases life-support can be used.

Dementia
For dementia cases, studies suggest that diets with high Omega 3 content, low in saturated fats and sugars, along with regular exercise can increase the level of brain plasticity .Other studies have shown that mental exercise such a newly developed “computerized brain training programs” can also help build and maintain targeted specific areas of the brain. These studies have been very successful for those diagnosed with schizophrenia and can improve fluid intelligence, the ability to adapt and deal with new problems or challenges the first time you encounter them, and in young people it can still be effective in later life.

Amnesia
Amnesia is very difficult to treat, if it is caused by an underlying cause such as Alzheimer's disease or infections the cause may be treated but the amnesia may not be. If caused by dissociative or anxiety disorders, amnesia can be treated by psychotherapy, tranquilizers and other medications.