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🇬🇷 Greece /Health & Science

The rare form of early-onset dementia, and the symptoms often overlooked

From Kathimerini · () Greek

Translated from Greek and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Frontotemporal dementia accounts for about 5% to 10% of all dementia cases and affects an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people in the United States.
  • It is the most common form of early-onset dementia, with about 60% of diagnoses involving people aged 45 to 64.
  • Early symptoms often involve behavior, mood and social functioning rather than memory, which can lead doctors to mistake the disease for a psychiatric disorder.

Bruce Willis’s diagnosis helped bring frontotemporal dementia, or FTD, to wider public attention. The condition remains relatively rare, accounting for about 5% to 10% of all dementia cases and affecting an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people in the United States.

Yet FTD is the most common form of early-onset dementia. Around 60% of those diagnosed are between 45 and 64 years old, decades younger than the average person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Experts believe the number of cases is significantly underestimated because the disease is uncommon and many doctors, including specialists, have limited experience recognizing it.

“It is quite rare, so most doctors, even specialists, do not have the relevant experience and do not recognize the symptoms,” says Brad Dickerson, a neurologist at the Mass General Brigham Neuroscience Institute and director of the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital. The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration estimates that it takes about three to four years, on average, to diagnose the disease.

It is quite rare, so most doctors, even specialists, do not have the relevant experience and do not recognize the symptoms.

· Brad DickersonThe neurologist explains why frontotemporal dementia is often underdiagnosed.

The early signs can look very different from Alzheimer’s. FTD often begins in the front of the brain, which plays an important role in behavior, social relationships, addiction, motivation, organization and planning. As a result, the first changes may involve personality, behavior or mood rather than memory and thinking. Bruce Miller, a professor of neurology and director of the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center at the University of California, San Francisco, says this is why FTD is often mistaken for a psychiatric problem.

Most people with FTD receive a diagnosis before age 65, but researchers still do not fully understand why it appears earlier than other forms of dementia. About 20% of cases are thought to result from one of several genetic mutations, while experts believe undiscovered genes may contribute to the remaining 80%. Up to 40% of people with FTD also have a family history, although the supplied article ends before completing that point.

The front of the brain, which is very important for behavior, social relationships, addiction, motivation, organization and planning.

· Bruce MillerThe neurologist describes the brain region where frontotemporal dementia often begins.
About this summary

Originally published by Kathimerini in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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