Concentration Difficulty: Possible Medical Causes

Concentration difficulties can be caused by medical, cognitive or psychological problems or may be related to sleep disorders or medications, alcohol or drugs.

Psychological conditions that can interfere with concentration include anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, emotional trauma, and stress.

Concentration difficulty may be caused by medical conditions including:

• Congestive heart failure (deterioration of the heart’s ability to pump blood)

• Head trauma

• Heavy metal poisoning

• Infections

• Kidney disease (which includes any type of kidney problem such as kidney stones, kidney failure, and kidney anomalies)

• Liver disease (which includes any type of liver problem such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure)

• Medication side effects (improvement may take time after drug discontinuation)

• Metabolic disorders and certain vitamin deficiencies

• Pain syndromes

• Seizure disorders

• Sleep apnea (pauses in breathing during sleep)

• Stroke

• Vision disorders

Concentration difficulty can also be caused by cognitive problems including:

• Attention deficit disorder
• Delirium
• Dementia
• Learning disabilities

Concentration difficulty can also be caused by psychological conditions including:

• Alcohol or substance abuse

• Anxiety

• Bipolar disorder (alternating periods of depression and elevated mood)

• Depression

• Emotional trauma

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

• Schizophrenia (severe brain disorder affecting thought processes and emotional responses)

• Stress

In some cases, concentration difficulty may be a symptom of a serious or life-threatening condition that should be immediately evaluated in an emergency setting. These include:

• Brain or spinal cord injury

• Brain or spinal cord tumor

• Delirium

• Drug overdose

• Encephalitis (inflammation and swelling of the brain due to a viral infection or other causes)

• Heat stroke

• Kidney failure

• Meningitis (infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord)

• Seizure

• Sepsis (severe infection of the bloodstream)

• Stroke

To diagnose your condition, your doctor or licensed health care practitioner will ask you several questions related to your concentration difficulty including:

• How long have you had difficulty with concentration?

• Do you have any other symptoms?

• Do you have any difficulties with sleeping?

• Do you have any medical problems?

• Did anything such as an injury or illness precede the symptoms?

• What medications are you taking? Are you taking any new medications?

• Do you drink any alcohol?

• Are you using any street drugs?

Because concentration difficulty can be due to serious diseases, failure to seek treatment can result in serious complications and permanent damage. Once the underlying cause is diagnosed, it is important for you to follow the treatment plan that you and your health care professional design specifically for you to reduce the risk of potential complications including:

• Developmental delays and failure to thrive
• Learning disability
• Paralysis or inability to move a body part
• Permanent cognitive impairment
• Permanent loss of sensation
• Personality changes
• Physical disability

Concentration difficulties may accompany other symptoms, which vary depending on the underlying disease, disorder or condition. Conditions that lead to concentration difficulty may involve several different body systems.

Concentration difficulties may accompany symptoms related to infection including:

• Enlarged lymph nodes
• Fever
• Headache
• Malaise or lethargy
• Nausea with or without vomiting
• Rash
• Seizures
• Stiff or rigid neck

Concentration difficulties may accompany symptoms related to chronic illnesses and metabolic disorders including:

• Abdominal pain

• Abnormal heart rhythm such as rapid heart rate (tachycardia) or slow heart rate (bradycardia)

• Changes in skin

• Confusion or loss of consciousness for even a brief moment

• Difficulty breathing or rapid breathing

• Fatigue

• Feeling very thirsty

• Frequent urination, or reduced or absent urination

• Fruity breath

• Muscle weakness

• Nausea with or without vomiting

Concentration difficulties may accompany symptoms related to other problems such as injury, stroke, dementia, or psychiatric conditions. Examples include:

• Change in sleep patterns

• Changes in mood, personality or behavior

• Confusion or loss of consciousness for even a brief moment

• Difficulty with memory, thinking, talking, comprehension, writing or reading

• Impaired balance and coordination

• Loss of vision or changes in vision

• Nausea with or without vomiting

• Numbness, weakness or paralysis

• Seizure

• Severe headache

In some cases, concentration difficulty may be a symptom of a life-threatening condition that should be immediately evaluated in an emergency setting. Seek immediate medical care (call 911) if you, or someone you are with, have any of these life-threatening symptoms including:

• Change in level of consciousness or alertness such as passing out or unresponsiveness

• Change in mental status or sudden behavior change such as confusion, delirium, lethargy, hallucinations or delusions

• Garbled or slurred speech or inability to speak

• High fever (higher than 101 degrees Fahrenheit)

• High-pitched, shrill cries in an infant or small child

• Paralysis or inability to move a body part

• Poor feeding, unusual sleepiness, or irritability in a child or infant

• Seizure

• Stiff or rigid neck

• Sudden change in vision, loss of vision, or eye pain

• Trauma to the head

• Worst headache of your life