Health
Differences between frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
When Bruce Willis’ family announced he was diagnosed Frontotemporal dementia Last week, that was after years of his family searching for answers.
he said it was not uncommon Dr. Steven StephensenNeurologist at UT Health Austin’s Comprehensive Memory Center at the Mulva Clinic for the Neurosciences. Stephensen not only diagnoses and treats people with different types of dementia, including those involving the frontotemporal lobe, but his father also has this type of dementia.
What is frontotemporal dementia?
This type of dementia involves shrinkage of the frontal and/or temporal lobes of the brain. These are not the same areas where Alzheimer’s disease is found. It is located in the parietal lobe in the middle of the brain.
There are two major types and other subtypes of frontotemporal dementia. The type of person depends on the accumulation of the protein responsible for dementia and where it occurs in the frontal or temporal lobes.
The two major types are behavioral aphasia and primary progressive aphasia (language).
Behavioral types often get angry or behave inappropriately. They are often misdiagnosed with mental health disorders.
This type is “very taxing on families and difficult to find adequate care,” Stephensen said.
Assisted living and dementia care facilities are often reluctant to accept behavioral individuals. Because their symptoms can be difficult to manage and affect those around them.
Primary Progressive Aphasia is like Willis has. It is often confused with simple aphasia or inability to use language, or with stroke. However, unlike stroke, there is no slurred speech.
Instead, the whole notion of language is reduced. In particular, Willis has reduced semantic subvariants called his variants.
If a person with this type of dementia is handed an apple, “they may remember that they ate it before, but they don’t know it’s an apple. They lose the whole concept of an apple.” said Stephensen.
It doesn’t mean that you forget words or become unable to speak. They have no knowledge of apples. It’s like seeing an apple for the first time, he said.
In many cases, less common words appear first, followed by common language. Stephenson likens it to landing in a foreign country and not speaking the language.
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When does frontotemporal dementia develop?
This is one of the rare forms of dementia. Behavioral variants are hereditary, but aphasia variants are not.
Both usually occur between the ages of 40 and 65. Many other dementias, including Alzheimer’s disease, occur later in life.
Patients usually persist for 5 to 15 years after diagnosis until death. They often die before that from another cause.
Does this type of dementia affect memory?
Mainly not. All late stages of dementia tend to look the same and affect memory, ability to walk, swallow, and perform daily functions.
When it comes to testing for dementia, doctors often do a memory test to see if the patient can remember three words, draw a clock, and ask what day it is today. A person with frontotemporal dementia may pass all these tests.
Often they don’t think there is anything wrong with them. A family member becomes someone with whom something is wrong, either in their use of language or in their behavior.
“Most patients will say no problem,” Dr. Steffensen said. “They have no insight.”
This is actually a good sign, Steffensen said, which usually means you’re in the early stages of the disease.
Often they can live independently for a long time. Because it doesn’t affect memory until later in life, people with this type of dementia don’t wander or forget to turn off the stove.
Steffensen’s father was diagnosed in 2014 and is now 72 years old and living independently.
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How is it diagnosed?
Doctors look for symptoms such as loss of language and changes in behavior. They rule out other potential causes of symptoms. He will also have an MRI to see if the brain is shrinking in those areas.
Doctors know that excesses of certain proteins cause this, but there is no definitive diagnosis until an autopsy.
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Is there a cure for frontotemporal dementia?
There are no drugs specifically for this type of dementia, but one subvariant is thought to respond to some of the new drugs that slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
Steffensen focuses on symptom management. This includes medications to control behavior. For the aphasic type, speech therapy can help prolong language use.
Steffensen is also focused on making sure patients are as healthy as possible, and have never died from other causes. He encourages people to focus on eating healthy, exercising, sleeping and relaxing, and working on other medical problems such as diabetes and heart disease.
If doing all these things seems overwhelming, he suggests that patients and their caregivers focus on doing two things a month and build those habits.
how to get help
- Join our support group. There are groups for caregivers and people with dementia. AGE of Central Texas and the Capital of the Alzheimer’s Association Texas Chapter Host virtual and face-to-face groups.
- Call our 24/7 helpline, 800-272-3900. A qualified clinician is on the other side to help discuss issues, develop care plans, and connect with resources.
- Search for respite groups. Churches often host them. You can also find it from the AGE of Central Texas.
- Search for resources. Visit alz.org/help-support/caregiving to find resources by stage of illness.
- attend a meeting Riverbend Church and AGE of Central Texas will host a GPS: Navigation for Caregivers Conference on Saturday from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. Riverbend Church is located in the state capital at 4214 N. Texas Highway. The conference is free, but attendees must register at . http://www.TinyURL.com/GPSconference2023.
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Sources 2/ https://www.statesman.com/story/news/healthcare/2023/02/21/bruce-willis-frontotemporal-lobe-dementia-diagnosis-symptoms-treatment-alzheimers/69923024007/ The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article |
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