Fourth most common dementia often inherited

UK scientists have shown that the fourth most common form of dementia is often inherited. Fronto-temporal dementia (FTD), which affects over 11,000 people in the UK, has a number of variants, and researchers part-funded by the Alzheimer’s Research Trust found that some types are more likely to be inherited than others. The findings are published in Neurology.

The team studied 225 patients diagnosed with FTD, with analysis revealing 42% had some family history of the disease.

FTD is a progressive disease that damages the front part of the brain, responsible for controlling behaviour, emotions and language, and causes dementia in people aged 50-60. Behavioural symptoms may include acting inappropriately or a complete change of personality.

Less commonly, people with the disease experience language problems as the first symptom, such as losing the ability to name objects. The new research shows that the language variants of FTD are less likely to be inherited than the behavioural variants.

The researchers also used blood samples to study the patients’ genes. Five genes are already known to cause FTD, and the team looked for changes in these genes. They found many patients who, despite having a strong family history of disease, did not have changes in the known genes, suggesting there are still more that are implicated in the disease to be discovered.

Rebecca Wood, Chief Executive of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, said:

"Fronto-temporal dementia can be extremely distressing for patients and their families. With no treatments currently available, we desperately need to invest in research to find ways to halt this devastating condition.

"Discovering new genes and gene variations could open the door to new treatments. This new work adds to our understanding of the disease, and we hope it will boost research efforts."

"700,000 people in the UK have dementia, a number forecast to double within a generation. "

(Source: Alzheimer’s Research Trust: Neurology: November 2009)