They discovered five cases of Alzheimer’s that developed due to medical treatment

Patients with childhood growth problems were given hormonal therapy, now obsolete, which would have been contaminated with proteins associated with the disease. According to the study in Nature, this is the first evidence of its kind. Infobae’s expert analysis

According to World Health Organization (WHO)“The Madness is the result of various Illnesses and Injuries which affects Brain, Alzheimer’s disease This is the most common form of dementia and This may represent 60% to 70% of cases.,

by infobay

Alzheimer’s is a neurological disorders what causes brain atrophy, is affecting neurons and promote one deterioration in a person’s thinking and behavior, Who increasingly has difficulty living autonomously.

This condition is characterized by the accumulation of toxic versions of the amyloid beta protein, in charge of transmit information to the brainespecially between Neurons. This accumulation, so-called, damages the internal neuronal structure. tau proteinleading to Degeneration of nerve cells. To date, no single factor has been discovered that directly causes this disease. Rather, it has been proposed that various indicators, such as age, genetic inheritance, environment, eating habits, and general health, play a role in its development.

However, a puzzle has recently emerged that defies conventional expectations: experts in the United Kingdom have identified possible cases in which Alzheimer’s “seems” to occur. medically obtained and because of transmission of amyloid beta protein,” as described in a release. The discovery was made by scientists at the University College of London (UCL) and University College London Hospitals (UCLH).

According to the authors, this is the “first evidence” of such cases. In the study published in the journal Nature, they described a group of young patients apparently unaware of the Alzheimer’s-related genetic mutation who had a similar past: As a child he received growth hormone extracted from a dead human brain. This treatment was used decades ago to solve problems of short stature.

The surprising thing is in the transmission of proteins beta-amyloid During the hormonal process, the brain of these people is affected according to their work. This protein, one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s, spread decades later, forming plaques that trigger the neurodegenerative disease. These cases were classified as “iatrogenic” because they arose in medical procedures.

John CollingThe lead author of the research, specified in the statement: “There is no suggestion that Alzheimer’s disease can spread between individuals during activities of daily living or routine medical activities., “The patients we describe received a specific and long-discontinued medical treatment that involved injecting them with a material that is now known to be contaminated with disease-related proteins.”

“The identification of transmission of beta-amyloid pathology in these rare conditions should lead us to review measures to prevent accidental transmission through other medical or surgical procedures to prevent these types of cases from occurring in the future.” Koling remained in second place.

In the UCL statement, Collings and his colleagues detailed that all the people mentioned in the article were given the opportunity to have children with a type of human growth hormone extracted from the pituitary glands of deceased individuals (cadaver-derived human growth hormone, or c-HGH). Was considered as. , It was used to treat at least 1,848 people in the United Kingdom between 1959 and 1985 for various causes of short stature and height. After it was recognized, it was withdrawn in 1985 Some batches were contaminated with prions (infectious proteins) causing Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (NDER: A rare brain disorder that leads to dementia, according to the Mayo Clinic) In some people. Then, C-HGH “It was replaced by a synthetic growth hormone that did not carry the risk of transmission.”

“Five of these people had symptoms of dementia and were already diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or would meet diagnostic criteria for the condition; Another individual met criteria for mild cognitive impairment. “These people were between 38 and 55 years old when they started showing neurological symptoms,” the authors explained.

While they explained: “These patients developed symptoms at an unusually young age, suggesting that they did not have the typical sporadic Alzheimer’s that is associated with old age. In the five patients for whom samples were available for genetic testing, the team ruled out hereditary Alzheimer’s disease. Since treatment with C-HGH is no longer used, there is no risk of new transmission through this route., No cases of Alzheimer’s acquired by other medical or surgical procedures have been recorded. There is no indication that beta-amyloid can be transmitted in everyday life or during routine medical or social care.,

For his part, co-author of the work, Jonathan Schott, acknowledged: “It is important to emphasize that the circumstances through which we believe Alzheimer’s disease tragically developed in these individuals are highly unusual, And it’s important to emphasize that there is no risk.” The disease can be transmitted between people or in routine medical care. However, these findings provide potentially valuable information about the mechanisms of disease and pave the way for future research that will hopefully clarify our understanding of the causes of more specific, late-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Understanding will improve.”

Gargi Banerjee, one of the research experts, contributed: “We found that it is possible for amyloid beta pathology to be transmitted and contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. This transmission occurred after treatment with a now obsolete form of growth hormone and often involved repeated treatment with contaminated material over many years. “There is no indication that Alzheimer’s disease can be acquired through close contact or during the provision of routine care.”

infobae Analyzed this revealing finding with Dr. Conrado Estol, Expert in Neurology, Health and Wellness. “The new study from the United Kingdom identified 5 patients – out of 1,800 studied – who received growth hormone of cadaveric origin in childhood (between 1959 and 1985) and developed Alzheimer’s disease between the ages of 38 and 55 . The patients were treated with hormones because they were short. This early form had no genetic cause and did not clinically match Creutzfeldt-Jakob dementia, which is linked to transmission through the use of growth hormone,” the expert said.

Read more on Infobae