Dementia for 2

When we speak of someone having Alzheimer's, we are usually speaking of someone over the age of 65. However, there are cases of what is known as "Early Onset Alzheimer's" in people as young as 30 and in some cases even younger.

While this is rare, it is becoming more prevalent in our society. According to the Alzheimer's Association Newsletter dated 1993, 1-10% of people are thought to have early onset Alzheimer's. That is quite a lot of people in the prime of life with this disease. Researchers say that because of the increased technology surrounding the detection of Alzheimer's, they are now able to detect the disease earlier than before.

The emotional and financial burdens placed on families is enormous. These are folks that may still have children at home, jobs, and could possibly be caring for their own parents.

Because the disease is often misdiagnosed in the young, most insurance providers do not cover it. This can lead to even more financial problems for the family.

The Mayo Clinic has also written an article with limited discussion concerning early onset Alzheimer's. This article also touches on the hereditary factor in early onset Alzheimer's.

I found more from Wikipedia. Since I am not a geneticist or scientist of any type, I could not understand a lot of the medical ling but, you can grasp the gist of the article.