Scientists identify another type of dementia

Doctors are officially recognizing a new brain disorder that falls under the umbrella of dementia. While this new disease may come with many of the same symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, is thought to affect the brain differently and develop more slowly, and may be more common in elderly people.
The new type of dementia, called "limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy," or LATE for short, was identified and described in a new report published in the journal Brain on Tuesday. If the name sounds complicated, the disease is even more so: Because many forms of dementia can cause similar symptoms, and even overlap with each other, telling the difference and making the right diagnosis can get tricky.
But researchers are hoping that further research into the brain and the underlying causes behind these disparate types of dementia will help clarify things and lead to improved treatment options, CNN explained. For example, if drugs were designed to treat Alzheimer's, people who had undiagnosed LATE but thought they had Alzheimer's may have just thought their treatment didn't work — when actually, there might be new hope by seeking out treatments for this newly defined disease.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Further studies into LATE, and dementia in general, will be required in order to develop treatments that address the root causes and not just the symptoms. But this study is an important first step — a "roadmap," said Nina Silverberg, director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers Program at the National Institute on Aging. Learn more at CNN.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Shivani is the editorial assistant at TheWeek.com and has previously written for StreetEasy and Mic.com. A graduate of the physics and journalism departments at NYU, Shivani currently lives in Brooklyn and spends free time cooking, watching TV, and taking too many selfies.
-
Kenya arrests alleged ant smugglers
speed read Two young Belgians have been charged for attempting to smuggle ants out of the country to exotic pet buyers
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
'You shouldn't need a private company to fill out paperwork for you'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
China accuses NSA of Winter Games cyberattacks
speed read China alleges that the U.S. National Security Agency launched cyberattacks during the Asian Winter Games in February
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Katy Perry, Gayle King visit space on Bezos rocket
Speed Read Six well-known women went into lower orbit for 11 minutes
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Scientists map miles of wiring in mouse brain
Speed Read Researchers have created the 'largest and most detailed wiring diagram of a mammalian brain to date,' said Nature
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Scientists genetically revive extinct 'dire wolves'
Speed Read A 'de-extinction' company has revived the species made popular by HBO's 'Game of Thrones'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Dark energy may not doom the universe, data suggests
Speed Read The dark energy pushing the universe apart appears to be weakening
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Pharaoh's tomb discovered for first time in 100 years
Speed Read This is the first burial chamber of a pharaoh unearthed since Tutankhamun in 1922
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Scientists report optimal method to boil an egg
Speed Read It takes two temperatures of water to achieve and no fancy gadgets
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Europe records big leap in renewable energy
Speed Read Solar power overtook coal for the first time
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Blue Origin conducts 1st test flight of massive rocket
Speed Read The Jeff Bezos-founded space company conducted a mostly successful test flight of its 320-foot-tall New Glenn rocket
By Peter Weber, The Week US