My DH has been dianosed with fronto temporal dementia and also after an EMG test he's in the beginning stages of ALS - has anyone here dealt with this?
I believe bluedaze's husband has FTD, and there are a few other readers here whose spouses have that diagnosis. Hopefully, they will see your topic title and respond.
We have a friend who was diagnosed with FTD and Lewy Body's Dementia, which has a physical component similar to Parkinson's. I am not up on all of the different dementias, but if you Google FTD, you will find mountains of information.
Dilly-I think the two diagnosis are just the luck of a bad draw. Nothing I have read links the two. Some AD meds like seroquil can cause Parkinsonian symptoms which resolve with med adjustment
It sure is a bad draw - the dr has put him on lithium which some italian dr's have found to delay the progress of ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). The bad news never stops - except good news today. A neighbor fixed our mower and my DH finally was able (physically and mentally) to mow the lawn. Made me very happy. Thanks all.
My hubby was just diagnosed with FTD 2 months ago/58 years old and now after having test after test his ana is elevated which means Lupus, the doctors said the xray showed COPD/emphysem( he never smoked), he also has strabismus and chronic ptosis. It seems that with FTD other situations are coming on fast. I thought my LO had ALS or possible MS but they are saying Lupus. We have to see a specialist at the end of the month. What symptoms is your husband showing with the ALS and how old is he?
Hi Dilly. Just thought I'd share with you an email I received after telling friends that my DH was diagnosed with FTD in June 2009. The message and link below is from a friend of mine who has ALS and whose father had FTD...
Don't know if this has anything to do your your DH having both but thought you might want to know. According to the Asso for FTD this genetic link is only about 3% of FTD diagnoses.
Scientists have discovered a link between a mutated gene and a protein found in dead brain cells of people who suffer from a form of dementia and other neurological disorders. The finding, reported in the Sep. 26, 2007, issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, demonstrates for the first time a pathological pathway that ultimately results in cell death related to frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease). The discovery could eventually play a role in the design of new drug therapies. The study was funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Leonard Petrucelli, Ph.D., and Dennis W. Dickson, M.D, of the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., led the international team of scientists in the study supported by the Mayo Clinic Foundation. The study, in cell cultures, showed that a cell death pathway is involved. A cascade of events begins with a mutation in the gene progranulin (PGRN) located on chromosome 17. Normally, high levels of PGRN exist in a cell to promote cell growth and survival. But when progranulin gene mutations occur, low levels of PGRN result. The investigators showed that this causes a protein called TDP-43 to be cut into two fragments. These fragments then migrate from their usual location in the nucleus into the surrounding cytoplasm of the cell where they form inclusions, or insoluble clumps of protein. This abnormal process results in the neurodegeneration in people with FTD and ALS.