The Development Of Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease

Early onset Alzheimer’s is defined as the development of Alzheimer’s before a person 65-years-old. In fact, some people as young as 40 or 50-years-old can develop early onset Alzheimer’s. However, it most commonly begins when a person is in their 50s.

Genetics And Early Onset Alzheimer’s

While it is possible for genetics to play a role in early onset Alzheimer’s, it is a very small chance that this is going to happen. These people have a defective gene on chromosome 1, 14 or 21. This seems to be what triggers early onset Alzheimer’s. Unfortunately, only 1 copy of the gene from either parent is required for a person to be affected by early onset Alzheimer’s. It happens because these genetic mutations produce beta-amyloid, which is a protein. Whenever the production of this protein is disrupted early online Alzheimer’s occurs.

Only a really small group of families actually has a fault in this chromosome. These families are mostly found within the United States. They are descendants of German immigrants who came from the Volga River Valley.

The Connection Between Downs Syndrome And Early Onset Alzheimer’s

Unfortunately there is also a clear connection between Down's syndrome and early onset Alzheimer’s. This is most likely due to the fact that Down's syndrome is caused by a genetic abnormality that takes place in chromosome 21. Research has been done that show that 50% of those people who have Down’s syndrome will eventually develop Alzheimer’s whenever they are between the ages of 50 and 60-years-old. This is a definite increase over those people who do not have Down's syndrome.

Testing For Early Onset Alzheimer’s

You may be wondering whether or not you should get yourself tested. Well, it is actually very difficult to get genetic testing done for this because there is no known cure for Alzheimer’s as of yet. Therefore, it really is a personal decision that you will have to make. Only you can really decide whether or not there is any advantage to you or your family in knowing that you have a greater than average possibility of developing Alzheimer’s at an early age. You also need to understand that even if these tests show that you are at higher risk, they still will not tell you at what age you will develop early onset Alzheimer’s. It will be difficult even for yourself to gage this as the development can vary by as much as 2 decades.