Medical Breakthroughs: Understanding the different types of dementia
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More than 55 million people are living with dementia, but did you know there are actually different types of dementia conditions?
Understanding the differences is important in treating the diseases.
"It usually presents with changes in people's personality and changes in language that affects people's ability to both perform their jobs and eventually take care of themselves," University of Cincinnati Behavioral Neurologist Dr. Russell Sawyer said.
Sawyer says genetics may play a role for up to 40 percent of patients, and science could soon be able to stop its progression.
"Either gene therapy, in which we change out the gene for a new functional gene, or replacing the proteins that we're missing," Sawyer said.
Meanwhile, alcohol-induced dementia is the direct effect of drinking too much for too long. It's associated with memory loss, difficulty with problem-solving, and impaired judgement.
"Two drinks per week over a one-year period of time was associated with both smaller brains, and more thinking and memory problems," Sawyer said.
Early detection and research are keys to managing and possibly stopping the progression of these diseases.
Alzheimer's disease and Frontotemporal Dementia, or FTD, can be tricky for doctors to tell apart.
Alzheimer's is caused by specific brain changes called Amyloid Plaques and Neurofibrillary Tangles. However, FTD is actually a group of different diseases with various causes.
This makes it harder to develop accurate tests for FTD compared to Alzheimer's, where recent advancements have greatly improved diagnosis.
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