Researchers found Alzheimer's disease may be transmitted from one person to another during specific medical procedures, according to The Independent.
Here are five takeaways:
1. The study examined eight people who died of a separate kind of brain disease after receiving injections of a humane growth hormone. The adults, aged 36 and 51, all died of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and researchers found seven of them harbored the misfolded proteins linked to the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. There has been no prior evidence of people in this age cohort having such proteins.
2. Based of their analysis, researchers found Alzheimer's may be a transmissible disease leading many professionals to question the safety of some medical procedures including blood transfusions and invasive dental treatment, which involves the transfer of contaminated tissue or surgical treatment.
3. The results are preliminary and researchers emphasize individuals cannot catch the disease from living with someone who has Alzheimer's disease.
4. Researchers have hypothesized three possible ways to become infected with Alzheimer's — it is inherited, it is spontaneous or more recently, it is acquired through a medical accident.
5. Medical professionals claim more research must be conducted before drawing conclusions about the potential risks in medical or dental treatments.
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