The Sad Case of The Youngest Person Ever to Be Diagnosed With Alzheimer's
ScienceAlert••general
Key Points:
- In 2022, neurologists in China diagnosed a 19-year-old with probable Alzheimer's disease, making him the youngest known patient without recognized genetic mutations linked to the condition.
- The patient exhibited significant memory decline starting at age 17, with brain scans showing hippocampal shrinkage and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers consistent with Alzheimer's.
- Unlike most early-onset Alzheimer's cases, which are typically explained by inherited genetic mutations (familial Alzheimer's disease), no known mutations or suspect genes were found in this patient after a genome-wide search.
- The young man had no family history of dementia, no other illnesses, and his cognitive decline severely impacted his memory and academic performance, although he remained able to live independently.
- Researchers emphasize
