For centuries, physicians were puzzled by a rare phenomenon. Children, often siblings, were born healthy to healthy parents.
But around six years old, they began experiencing a cognitive decline. They lost their speech, sight and motor skills. They died within a few years.
What Is Childhood Dementia?
British scientist Frederick Batten described the condition in 1903 and named it after himself. In the last 50 years, scientists have further identified Batten’s disease as a juvenile form of a neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL) disorder, a terminal condition involving abnormal buildup in the brain.
Some call it “childhood dementia.” Although it’s far rarer than the adult version, it also causes cognitive decline in children and infants. As many as 700,000 children worldwide are living with childhood dementia, and many families have to wait years for accurate diagnoses.
