Eye changes may signal frontotemporal lobe degeneration
Using an inexpensive, non-invasive, eye-imaging technique, the Penn Medicine scientists found that patients with FTD showed thinning of the outer retina -- the layers with the photoreceptors through which we see -- compared to control subjects. The retina is potentially affected by neurodegenerative disorders because it is a projection of the brain. Prior studies have suggested that patients with Alzheimer's disease and ALS may also have thinning of the retina -- although a different part of the retina. Thus, imaging the retina may help doctors confirm or rule out FTD. "Our finding of outer retina thinning in this carefully designed study suggests that specific brain pathologies may be mirrored by specific retinal abnormalities, said study lead author Benjamin J. Kim, MD, assistant professor of Ophthalmology at Penn's Scheie Eye Institute. Neurodegenerative diseases in general are challenging to diagnose, and often are confirmed only by direct examination of brai...