My mom has early dementia, we switched her sofa & recliner location. Could a simple move like that throw her into an extreme confused state?

Why would you change her room around? If it had been that way for years, yes the change could cause confusion. I am 71 and my daughter came home to live after being laid off. She was given a shelf in the pantry but she went and changed all my shelves to what was logical to her. I could not find a thing and put it back the way "I" had it. Now take a person suffering from a Dementia?

I would, also, have her checked for a UTI.

"Sudden" is usually a key word that means she could have a UTI, which elderly women get very frequently and often have no other symptoms except changes in behavior and cognition, even hallucinations. If left untreated can turn septic and be life threatening, Please have her checked for this right away. It can be treated with antibiotics.

Yes, a simple move can cause anxiety. Consistency is key for my mother who has Alzheimer's. A doctor visit or a visit from a family member will increase her confusion for a week. But, those suggestions about the UTI are also valid and worth checking into.

I would have her tested for UTI. Pretty sure you can get OTC test strips, try that first before you make a trip to the doctor.
But moving furniture can be very confusing. I would put it back where it was before. (unless the placement was a danger, posing a trip hazard. If that is the case she will eventually get used to the new placement. Keeping her safe is priority)

Probably seems "backwards" to her.

Here's some funny stories for perspective.

When we lived in North Carolina, my husband had a job where he travelled almost 3 weeks out of the month. If he was going somewhere "nice", I would go along with him for a week or 2. He was gone more than at home so we had 2 funny/weird incidents:

Once when we were home and in bed, he looked up at the ceiling and said, "Which hotel has ceiling fans?" I said, " You're home."

Like many men, he prefers to drive when we're in the car together. I can count on both hands the number of times he "passed" the house on the way home from somewhere. He saw it so infrequently, it didn't register in his brain what it looked like.

So changes in room set-ups can cause confusion since it doesn't look like "home."

My mom's scooter broke down. She focused on that so much that the Al social worker called us to handle it. Anyone who came in the room was asked about the status of repair or replacement. Until it was repaired 36 hours later it consumed her and she was super confused. Within 2 hours of fix, she was back to remembering things. Ymmv. I don't know if moving furniture back will help.

But yes, check for uti.

I agree with the other regarding checking for UTI. Sudden changes can be precipitated by UTI. When I first joined the forum, I was skeptical of all these suggestions, but mom's first UTI after moving to MC (months later, so it wasn't the move) she exhibited extreme signs of sun-downing. She would be okay in the morning, but later afternoon into the evening she was fit to be tied! Had to get out! Had guests coming! Set off every door alarm trying to get out! We had to use anti-anxiety meds along with the antibiotic until it was resolved.

UTIs do odd things, esp when dementia is involved. Subsequent UTIs showed up as night time bed wetting (read SOAKING), but once treated, it stopped.

You can start with a home test, but they aren't always sensitive enough. Sometimes it takes a culture test. You can also try moving the furniture back to where it was and see if that helps. Changes are not good for those with dementia. Routines and where things have been for a long time are important!

Oh yes, I switched my moms bedroom set around and had to switch it back because she thought she was somewhere else and was confused to her surroundings. Keep things as is in my opinion. I agree with other posters about checking for a UTI.

Absolutely. Put the furniture back where it was. Visits outside the home to places she's been hundreds of times (like a child's home) will do the same thing.

You have to stick with routine from now on. The only thing that I can add here is if this came from out of the blue (even though it happened about the same time as moving furniture) have her urine checked for infection. Urinary infection symptoms like confusion, anger, other behavior issues can come on very quickly and some will think the person has has some kind of stroke or mental event. If she doesn't already have one, get dr to do an order for visiting nurse. The nurse can do all kinds of lab work so that mom doesn't have to go into the drs office.

When my husband had dementia and later Alzheimers, I attended Caregiver Support meetings once a month. Our Caregiver coordinator lived her life, first as wife to a 47 year old man who developed early onset Alzheimers and took care of him at home except when she worked he attended Adult Day Care. Second, Caregiving was her profession since graduating from coollege, so her work, beginning as a caregiver and progressing to Director of Care Giving at various homes, and ending as coordinator of county sponsored group. One thing she made sure we knew, among many, was that people who have dementia or memory loss cannot deal with change. Moving furniture around is change. Taking a different route home is change, they get confused. Moving from one town/apartment/house is change and they cannot take this. They will want to "go home", and then get lost. I would suggest leave the chairs and sofa where they were to make it easier for the loved ones to find them and feel safe.