Healthy Aging Health Center

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Head Injury and Alzheimer's

Question:

Is it possible for someone to develop Alzheimer's disease as a result of a blow to the head or repeated blows to the head? Is it possible for someone to develop Alzheimer's disease because they have been in a car accident? Or is it an absolute certainty that someone will develop Alzheimer's disease because of a onetime accident or repeated head injury? I ask this question because I have come across a friend who has been in a car accident and she claims that her neurologist says that Alzheimer's disease is a certainty in her future. As far as I know Alzheimer's is a brain disease, and I find it unbelievable that someone can develop a disease from a blow to the head. Just as I would find it unbelievable to tell someone after hitting their thumb with a hammer that they will develop cancer to the arm (as a direct result). My friend was not told that she would develop the symptoms of this disease, but rather the disease itself. I would just like to know if this is possible. Everything that I know about Alzheimer's disease tells me that this is just not possible. But I hesitate to talk to her until I know the truth.

Answer:

I don't know the specific area of the brain that may have been injured in your friend's accident. However, research shows that those who have one or more previous head traumas have a significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease as they age.

I am not aware of any study that would be so strong as to say that previous head injuries are a sure track to Alzheimer's. Remember that our chances are 50/50 anyway if we live to age 85. I recently ran into a young man in a store (in his early 30s) who had just been diagnosed with Alzheimer's after having several concussions in sports injuries in high school.

I don't know where your friend's doctor got such definite causal information, and he/she may be correct. The reality is, at least until cause and effect for Alzheimer's is discovered, there is nothing any of us can do to prevent it. I think we all have to live our lives in the healthiest and happiest way possible.