Key Indicators Of Primary Progressive Aphasia

Memory Loss

Some memory loss symptoms are associated with primary progressive aphasia itself. When the language centers in the brain degenerate, patients may forget words or their associations. They might have trouble naming familiar objects or individuals. It's common for the underlying cause of PPA to be Alzheimer's disease. When the abnormal proteins manufactured by Alzheimer's disease attack the brain's language centers, the result is a form of primary progressive aphasia. Alzheimer's disease causes thirty to forty percent of cases.

In addition, Alzheimer's disease is responsible for frontotemporal lobar degeneration in around sixty to seventy percent of patients. PPA is also sometimes caused by an atypical presentation of Alzheimer's disease. When Alzheimer's disease is the underlying cause, patients will experience memory loss and other symptoms related to that disease. Memory loss also occurs when the underlying cause attacks the memory portion of the brain.