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Published on: June 20, 2020
Practicalities (and real-life experiences) of dementia in adults with Down syndrome
Ayesha Harisinghani1, Clorinda Cottrell1, Karen Donelan2,3
1Down Syndrome Program, Division of Medical Genetics and Metabolism, Department of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Abstract:
Adults with down syndrome (DS) have a lifetime dementia risk in excess of 95%, with a median age of onset of 55 years, due to trisomy 21. Co-occurring Alzheimer's disease (AD) has increased morbidity and mortality, and it is now recommended to screen for AD in all adults with DS beginning at 40 years of age. In this manuscript, we present two clinical cases of adults with DS who developed AD summarizing their medical histories, presenting symptoms, path to diagnosis and psychosocial aspects of care collected from retrospective chart review with caregiver consent. These two cases were chosen due to their complexity and interwoven nature of the medical and psychosocial aspects, and highlight the complexity and nuance of caring for patients with DS and AD.
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