Who gets frontotemporal dementia?

Frontotemporal dementia affects the front and sides of the brain (the frontal and temporal lobes). Dementia mostly affects people over 65, but frontotemporal dementia tends to start at a younger age. Most cases are diagnosed in people aged 45-65, although it can also affect younger or older people.

Does frontotemporal dementia run in families?

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a highly heritable group of neurodegenerative disorders, with around 30% of patients having a strong family history.

What might make someone more at risk of developing frontotemporal dementia?

Your risk of developing frontotemporal dementia is higher if you have a family history of dementia. There are no other known risk factors.

What is the main cause of frontotemporal dementia?

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) or frontotemporal degenerations refers to a group of disorders caused by progressive nerve cell loss in the brain's frontal lobes (the areas behind your forehead) or its temporal lobes (the regions behind your ears).

Can you prevent frontotemporal dementia?

Frontotemporal dementia is a neurodegenerative condition that tends to strike people between the ages of 45 and 65. Researchers say lifestyle changes can reduce a younger adult's risk of getting this disease. Experts recommend moderate physical exercise, mental games such as puzzles, and quality sleep.

What is frontotemporal dementia?

At what age can you get frontotemporal dementia?

Frontotemporal dementia affects the front and sides of the brain (the frontal and temporal lobes). Dementia mostly affects people over 65, but frontotemporal dementia tends to start at a younger age. Most cases are diagnosed in people aged 45-65, although it can also affect younger or older people.

Is dementia more common in males or females?

Worldwide, women with dementia outnumber men 2 to 1. Brain scans tell us that the rate at which brain cells are dying in the brain is faster in women than in men. Women are more likely to live longer than men. However, although risk increases with age, dementia is caused by diseases of the brain not age alone.

What are the early signs of frontotemporal dementia?

Can frontotemporal dementia come on suddenly?

Symptoms of FTD start gradually and progress steadily, and in some cases, rapidly. They vary from person to person, depending on the areas of the brain involved.

How common is frontotemporal dementia?

FTD represents an estimated 10%-20% of all dementia cases. It is recognized as one of the most common presenile dementias (meaning it occurs in a younger population). The prevalence world wide is uncertain with estimates of FTD amongst people ages 45 to 64 between 15 - 22 per 100,000 (Knopman, 2011).

What are the chances of getting FTD?

In some families, there is a single faulty gene that will definitely cause FTD if it is passed down from a parent to a child. This is known as 'familial FTD'. About 10 to 15 in every 100 people with FTD have this type. Any child of a person with familial FTD has a 1 in 2 chance of getting the same gene.

What disorder is most often misdiagnosed as dementia?

The symptoms of depression are often mistaken for dementia. It is not easy to define the symptoms because many people with dementia develop signs of depression, such as feelings of low self-esteem and confidence, tearfulness and appetite, concentration and memory problems.

Can frontal lobe dementia skip a generation?

It tends to run strongly in families, with several close relatives who develop the same type of dementia. For example, a person with a single-gene dementia may have a grandparent, a parent and a brother who all had frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

Does dementia skip a generation?

Many people affected by dementia are concerned that they may inherit or pass on dementia. The majority of dementia is not inherited by children and grandchildren. In rarer types of dementia there may be a strong genetic link, but these are only a tiny proportion of overall cases of dementia.

What are the 3 types of FTD?

There are three types of frontotemporal disorders (FTD): behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), primary progressive aphasia (PPA), and movement disorders.

Does alcohol cause frontal lobe dementia?

The Frontal lobe is responsible for actions like planning, organising, initiation and self-monitoring. This is termed Frontal Lobe Dementia which is also caused by alcoholism.

How do you reverse frontotemporal dementia?

There's currently no cure or specific treatment for frontotemporal dementia. Drugs used to treat or slow Alzheimer's disease don't seem to be helpful for people with frontotemporal dementia, and some may worsen the symptoms of frontotemporal dementia.

What is the life expectancy of someone with frontotemporal dementia?

End-of-life care for a person with FTD

People with FTD typically live six to eight years with their condition, sometimes longer, sometimes less. Most people die of problems related to advanced disease.

What stage of dementia is hypersexuality?

Hypersexual behavior may be a particular feature of behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), which affects ventromedial frontal and adjacent anterior temporal regions specialized in interpersonal behavior.

Is FTD a rare disease?

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), sometimes called frontotemporal disorders, is rare and tends to occur at a younger age than other dementias. About 60% of people with frontotemporal dementia are 45 to 64 years old.

What is biggest risk factor for dementia?

The biggest risk factor for dementia is ageing. This means as a person gets older, their risk of developing dementia increases a lot. For people aged between 65 and 69, around 2 in every 100 people have dementia. A person's risk then increases as they age, roughly doubling every five years.

Who is more prone to dementia?

The greatest known risk factor for Alzheimer's and other dementias is increasing age, but these disorders are not a normal part of aging. While age increases risk, it is not a direct cause of Alzheimer's. Most individuals with the disease are 65 and older. After age 65, the risk of Alzheimer's doubles every five years.

Which parent carries the Alzheimer's gene?

Those who inherit one copy of APOE-e4 from their mother or father have an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's. Those who inherit two copies from their mother and father have an even higher risk, but not a certainty. In addition to raising risk, APOE-e4 may tend to make symptoms appear at a younger age than usual.

What are 5 extreme behavior changes found with FTD?

Social withdrawal, apathy and limited interest in family, friends and hobbies may become evident. At times, they may behave inappropriately with strangers, lose their social manners, act impulsively and even break laws. People experiencing these changes may become self-centered, emotionally distant and withdrawn.

Can a teenager have dementia?

Early Dementia Risk Factors Can Show Up in Teens. TUESDAY, Aug. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Swedish researchers have identified nine risk factors -- many occurring during a person's teens -- that are tied to early onset dementia.