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Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that affects individuals under the age of 65.
About 5 percent of people with Alzheimer's disease develop symptoms before this age. Most of these people develop symptoms of the disease between 30 to 60 years.
It is a debilitating condition that not only impacts the afflicted person but also places a significant burden on their families as well. It is a challenge, impacting individuals in the prime of their lives.
Early-onset Alzheimer's disease is caused by a complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors. A significant number of cases are linked to well-characterized genetic mutations.
Young-onset Alzheimer's can result from mutations in one of three genes (APP, PSEN1, or PSEN2), which can potentially be passed on to other family members.
Having a family history in which a parent or grandmother has been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's can also be an indicator of one of these gene alterations.
These three genes are found in less than 1 percent of all Alzheimer's patients but in approximately 11 percent of young-onset Alzheimer's patients.
In this condition, the accumulation of two proteins is thought to harm nerve cells. Plaques are made up of fragments of one protein, beta-amyloid. Tangles are twisted fibers of another protein, tau.
These impair nerve cell activity and communication. Initially, these plaques and tangles harm the brain's memory.
Then they eventually damage additional parts of the brain.
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