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Frontotemporal
Dementia
Frontotemporal dementia is
a rare disorder that affects
the front (frontal lobes) and
the sides (temporal lobes)
of the brain. Because these
regions often, but not always,
shrink, brain imaging can be
useful in diagnosis.
There is no specific abnormality
associated with all cases
of frontotemporal dementia.
In one type called Pick’s
disease, there are abnormal
microscopic deposits called
Pick bodies, but these are
not always present.
Symptoms
- A more rapid onset than in Alzheimer’s disease.
- The first symptoms often involve changes in personality,
judgment, planning and social functioning. Individuals
may make rude or off-color remarks to family or
strangers. They may make unwise decisions about
finances or personal matters.
- Individuals’ feelings may seem disconnected from the
situation. They may show apathy and loss of interest
or excessive happiness and excitement.
- Individuals may have a strong desire to eat and gain
weight as a result.
Treatment
- There are no treatments
approved by the FDA for
frontotemporal dementia,
and none that have been
shown to be effective.
More Information.
Mayo Clinic
Ask a Nervous System Specialist:
Frontotemporal Dementia
www.mayoclinic.org
This feature is from the Ask a Specialist section of the Mayo Clinic’s consumer health information Web site.
Medline Plus: Pick’s Disease
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus
Medline Plus is a consumer health information
service of the U.S. National Library of
Medicine and National Institutes of Health
INIH). This Medline Plus encyclopedia
article provides basic information about symptoms,
causes and treatment of Pick’s disease,
one type of frontotemporal dementia.
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