Teenager in China becomes youngest person diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease
CTV
A teenager in China is the youngest person ever diagnosed with probable Alzheimer's disease, according to a study published on Dec. 31 by the doctors who diagnosed him.
A teenager in China is the youngest person ever diagnosed with probable Alzheimer's disease, according to a study published on Dec. 31 by the doctors who diagnosed him.
Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disease that affects thinking, memory and behaviour. The overwhelming majority of Alzheimer’s patients are over 65, making this case especially exceptional.
The study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, outlines how the unnamed 19-year-old began to show signs of memory loss two years before he was referred to the Innovation Center for Neurological Disorders and Department of Neurology at Xuanwu Hospital, in Beijing.
He'd begun having difficulty concentrating on his high school studies two years earlier, and started to suffer from short-term memory loss one year earlier.
"For example, he could not recall events from just one day prior or the places of his personal belongings," the authors wrote. "He also had difficulty reading and reacting."
Gradually, the teen's memory worsened. The authors wrote he often lost his belongings, couldn't remember whether he had eaten, and struggled to describe content he had just read.
As a result of his worsening condition, he had to withdraw from high school. Before the onset of his symptoms, he'd been considered an above-average student.
