CHICAGO—Young-onset dementia is often caused by neurodegenerative, autoimmune, or inflammatory conditions but rarely by Alzheimer’s disease, according to research presented at the 60th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. These causes differ substantially from those of dementia in older adults.
Brendan Kelley, MD, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, began the project after seeing many patients in their 20s experiencing severe dementia. “I wanted to try to provide answers as to what was causing dementia at such young ages,” he stated.
Dr. Kelley and colleagues examined potential causes of young-onset dementia and progressive cognitive decline in 235 patients ages 17 to 45 who previously had normal cognitive function. Mean age at onset was 34.7. Subjects with baseline static encephalopathy and mental retardation, as well as cases attributed to an isolated event such as traumatic brain injury, were excluded.
Neurodegenerative causes were predominant, accounting for 29.8% of the cases studied; these included frontotemporal dementia (13.2%), Huntington’s disease, familial prion disease, and very rarely, Alzheimer’s disease (
The researchers discovered that prior to age 30, inborn errors of metabolism were more common, whereas after age 35, neurodegenerative etiologies were prevalent.
“This study sheds light on the fact that young people do, in fact, develop dementia and that there are important differences between the causes of young-onset dementia and the causes of dementia in older individuals,” said Dr. Kelley.
More research is needed to discover the characteristics of young-onset dementia, as well as the most effective treatments for this disorder. Dr. Kelley and colleagues plan to prospectively follow patients with young-onset dementia to better understand what causes this condition.
—Marguerite Spellman