Home Lifestyle Actor Bruce Willis has frontotemporal dementia. What’s it? : NPR

Actor Bruce Willis has frontotemporal dementia. What’s it? : NPR

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Actor Bruce Willis has frontotemporal dementia. What’s it? : NPR

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Bruce Willis attends a film premiere in New York on Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. Almost a yr after Bruce Willis’ household introduced that he would step away from appearing after being recognized with aphasia, his household says his “situation has progressed.” In a press release posted Thursday, his household mentioned Willis has a extra particular prognosis of frontotemporal dementia.

Charles Sykes/Charles Sykes/Invision/AP


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Charles Sykes/Charles Sykes/Invision/AP


Bruce Willis attends a film premiere in New York on Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. Almost a yr after Bruce Willis’ household introduced that he would step away from appearing after being recognized with aphasia, his household says his “situation has progressed.” In a press release posted Thursday, his household mentioned Willis has a extra particular prognosis of frontotemporal dementia.

Charles Sykes/Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

Actor Bruce Willis has been recognized with dementia, evolving from a earlier prognosis of aphasia final spring, his household introduced Thursday.

Extra particularly, Willis has frontotemporal dementia, which might embody aphasia, which brings challenges with talking and writing.

“Sadly, challenges with communication are only one symptom of the illness Bruce faces,” his household mentioned. “Whereas that is painful, it’s a reduction to lastly have a transparent prognosis.”

Willis’s household mentioned final yr the actor can be stepping away from his decades-long profession resulting from his impaired cognition.

What’s frontotemporal dementia?

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Frontotemporal dementia, also called FTD, is one in every of a number of sorts of dementia and causes nerve injury within the frontal and temporal lobes, which ends up in a lack of operate in these areas, in accordance with the Alzheimer’s Affiliation.

There are several types of frontotemporal dementia. Behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia causes nerve loss within the areas of the mind that management empathy, judgment and conduct.

Major progressive aphasia deteriorates elements of the mind that management talking, writing and comprehension. The onset of signs sometimes begins earlier than age 65, however can happen later.

FTD may disrupt motor operate and motion, which could possibly be categorised as Lou Gehrig’s illness, also called ALS.

How is FTD completely different from Alzheimer’s?

Prognosis of FTD tends to occur between an individual of their 40s and 60s, whereas Alzheimer’s occurs at a later age. Alzheimer’s can also be extra intently tied to hallucinations, reminiscence loss and points with spatial orientation, equivalent to getting misplaced.

Remedy and prognosis

Docs use mind imaging expertise, equivalent to MRIs, to diagnose FTD. The outcomes are analyzed in tandem with a affected person’s medical historical past and signs. About 30% of individuals with frontotemporal degeneration inherit the illness; there are not any identified threat elements.

There are drugs that may assist relieve signs, however the illness finally will get worse with time.

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