Scientists Identify New Type of Brain Degeneration That Mimics Alzheimer ’s. Here’s What to Know

(WASHINGTON) — Some people told they have Alzheimer’s may instead have a newly identified mimic of the disease — and scientists say even though neither is yet curable, it’s critical to get better at telling different kinds of dementia apart. Too often, the word dementia is used interchangeably with Alzheimer’s when there are multiple types of brain degeneration that can harm people’s memory and thinking skills. “Not everything that looks like Alzheimer’s disease is Alzheimer’s disease,” said Dr. Julie Schneider, a neuropathologist at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. And among all the known dementias, this newly identified kind “is the most striking mimic of Alzheimer’s,” she added. It’s not clear how many people have this particular type, which an international team of scientists defined Tuesday in the journal Brain. But there could be a sizeable number, said Dr. Peter Nelson of the University of Kentucky, the paper’s lead author. The dementia was dubbed “LATE,” an acronym chosen in part because the oldest seniors seem at greatest risk. Here’s a look at various dementias in the confusing Alzheimer’s-or-not mix: Scientists stumbled onto newest disorder Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, and autopsies have long found its telltale signs in the brain: sticky plaque from an abnormal buildup of amyloid protein, and tangles of another prote...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized diseases onetime Source Type: news