Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) (original) (raw)
What is frontotemporal dementia (FTD)?
Dementia describes a group of symptoms that can include problems with memory, thinking or language, and changes in mood, emotions and behaviour. It is caused when the brain is damaged by disease.
The word ‘frontotemporal’ refers to the two sets of lobes (frontal and temporal) in the brain that are damaged in this type of dementia. FTD occurs when disease damages nerve cells in these lobes.
This causes the connections between them and other parts of the brain to break down. The levels of chemical messengers in the brain also get lower over time. These messengers allow nerve cells to send signals to each other and the rest of the body.
As more and more nerve cells are damaged and die, the brain tissue in the frontal and temporal lobes starts to get smaller.
There are two broad types of Frontotemporal dementia:
- Behavioural variant FTD – where damage to the frontal lobes of the brain mainly causes problems with behaviour and personality. These lobes are found behind the forehead and process information that affects how we behave and the control of our emotions. They also help us to plan, solve problems and focus for long enough to finish a task.
- Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) occurs when damage to the temporal lobes – on either side of the head nearest the ears – causes language problems. This part of the brain has many roles. A key function of the left temporal lobe is to store the meanings of words and the names of objects. The right temporal lobe helps most people recognise familiar faces and objects.
The first noticeable symptoms for a person with FTD will be changes to their personality and behaviour and/or difficulties with language.
These are very different from the early symptoms of more common types of dementia. For example, in Alzheimer’s disease, early changes are often problems with day-to-day memory. In the early stages of FTD, many people can still remember recent events.
What are the symptoms of frontotemporal dementia?
Frontotemporal dementia affects everyone differently. Its symptoms vary a lot and depend on which areas of the frontal and temporal lobes are damaged – and so the type of FTD the person has.
As with most forms of dementia, FTD is progressive. This means its symptoms may be mild at first, but they will get worse over time.
Find out more about FTD symptoms below.
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