The apolipoprotein E gene has been associated with various types of de
mentia. We studied the connection between the APOE gene and the risk a
nd onset of disease in 34 patients with clinically diagnosed frontal l
obe dementia (FLD) derived from a population-based study in the Nether
lands. A significant increased risk of FLD (odds ratio, 4.9; 95% CI, 1
.1-20.1) was found for the apoE4E4 genotype when adjusting for age, se
x, and family history of dementia other than FLD. The age at onset of
the disease decreased as the number of APOE4 alleles increased. Our p
opulation based study suggests that persons who are homozygous for the
APOE4 allele are at increased risk for developing FLD.