Alzheimer’s disease may, rarely, be transmitted by medical treatment
Childhood treatment with contaminated human growth hormone may cause the disease years later
RESEARCHERS DIVIDE Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, into two types. “Sporadic” cases usually occur in people over 65. Rarer “familial” ones are associated with a handful of mutations that run in families. Symptoms can begin in a patient’s 30s.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Can Alzheimer’s be transmitted?”
From the February 3rd 2024 edition
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