This information is provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD).
Pick’s disease is a neurological condition characterized by a slowly progressive deterioration of behavior, personality, or language.[5830] People with Pick’s disease have abnormal substances (called Pick bodies) inside nerve cells in the damaged areas of the brain. Pick bodies contain an abnormal form of a protein called tau. This protein is found in all nerve cells, but people with Pick’s disease have an abnormal amount or type of this protein.[5831] Symptoms often present sometime in the 50s, though it can occur as early as age 20 or as late as age 80. The course of the disease varies from person to person.[5830] The underlying cause of Pick’s disease is unknown.[5831] In some cases, the disease runs in families. While there is no treatment to slow the progression of the disease, medications can be used to treat individual symptoms.[5830]
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