While most people who suffer from dementia are diagnosed after age 65 with the more common late-onset dementia, there is a form of dementia that affects some people younger in life. Early-onset dementia, sometimes called younger-onset dementia, is usually diagnosed in people who are in their 40s and 50s, though it can be seen as early as in their 30s.
The Difference Between Early-Onset Dementia and Late-Onset Dementia
Age is one of the biggest differences between early- and late-onset dementia, but there are several other differences as well:
- Early-onset dementia, specifically Alzheimer’s disease, appears to be genetic. Many people with a genetic defect on chromosome 1 or 14 have early-onset dementia.
- Down syndrome patients have an inherent defect on chromosome 21 and are often diagnosed with dementia after age 40.
- People who have the APOE4 gene have a higher risk of dementia. Every person inherits two copies of the APOE gene. Stanford Medicine reports of the three variants, the most common APOE3 doesn’t affect one’s chance for Alzheimer’s; APOE2 is actually protective against the disease; and APOE4 carries the elevated risk.
- People who have early-onset dementia are more likely to have a condition that causes muscle twitching and spasms called myoclonus than those with late-onset dementia.
- It has been found that those with late-onset dementia do not decline as quickly as those with early-onset dementia.
Symptoms of Dementia
Most people associate memory loss and confusion with dementia. However, the disease has many other symptoms, including:
- Restlessness
- Lack of motivation
- Personality changes
- Trouble interpreting information, like reading a map
- Frequently misplacing or losing items
- Decreased ability to communicate
- Inability to complete familiar tasks, like using the remote
- Inability to follow instructions
- Increased lack of judgment
- Difficulty speaking or carrying on normal conversations
- Lack of reading skills
- Feeling uncomfortable in social situations; withdrawing from conversation and interactions
Tips for Living With Early-Onset Dementia
Dementia affects everyone differently. Most people have good and bad days. Focusing on the good days and joining a support group helps those living with dementia, as does eating a healthy diet, sharing your feelings about your illness, exercising and getting regular check-ups.
Work with your spouse, partner or family to plan for financial, legal and medical decisions that are important to you should you become unable to make those decisions on your own. You may want to consider creating an estate plan now, including a trust to protect your assets while you are alive and after your death.
If you have children, talk to them openly about the disease and its symptoms so they aren’t confused if your behavior changes or you can’t remember them one day but recognize them the next. You may also want to take pictures and videos so your children can have memories of you long into the future.
Contact Diamondback Healthcare Center
If you have concerns or need help caring for a loved one with dementia, contact Diamondback Healthcare Center today. Our Desert Diamond Memory Pavilion provides long-term comfort and care for residents with cognitive impairment in a Montessori-inspired lifestyle.