Dementia e Neuropsychologia最新文献

Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration (FTLD) encompasses progressive neurodegeneration primarily affecting the frontal and/or temporal lobes, presenting in varied pathological entities. These pathologies lead to diverse clinical syndromes collectively known as Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), which includes a behavioral variant, and primary progressive aphasia, with its non-fluent and semantic variants, and related conditions with parkinsonism or motoneuron disease features. The historical development of FTD concept is rooted in the pioneering work of Arnold Pick, who first described clinical cases of focal brain atrophy. Oskar Fischer significantly advanced this field by detailing the histopathological features of these conditions, such as the 'spongiform cortical wasting', and identifying characteristic neuronal changes such as the 'ballooned cells'. Fischer's contributions, alongside those of contemporaries like Alois Alzheimer, laid the foundation for understanding FTLD histopathology. Here, Fischer's overlooked work is spotlighted, advocating for a greater recognition, which he rightfully deserves for his contributions to the field of neurodegenerative diseases.

This study examined the nature of errors in prose recall made in normal aging from different cultural backgrounds: rural and urban areas.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the nature of errors in prose recall made in normal aging from different cultural backgrounds.

Methods: We evaluated neurologically normal elderly divided into two groups: 12 subjects resident in a rural area in Central Brazil (group 1, called "Interior") and 10 subjects from a metropolitan area in a big city in Central Brazil (group 2, called "Metropolis"). Responses by 22 nondemented older adults to the Logical Memory subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale were examined in a propositional analysis.

Results: Healthy older adults from rural areas (interior group) showed good immediate recalls, but had deficits in retention over a delay. Subjects from urban areas made errors of omission, not commission, at immediate recall.

Conclusion: These errors probably reflect difficulty with attentional control rather than memory per se. There are differences in the performance of the elderly when considering different levels of education for neuropsychological tests associated with immediate recalls (but not with delayed recall), suggesting that working memory systems may be more impacted by years of schooling than the coding memory system.

Mind-body interventions have been explored to enhance the psychological well-being of dementia caregivers; however, the specific effects of yoga practice remain underexamined.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the benefits of yoga on quality of life (QoL), life satisfaction, psychological well-being, attention, self-compassion, perceived stress, anxiety, depression, and caregiver burden for dementia caregivers.

Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted on September 11, 2024, in databases including SciELO, PubMed, BVSalud, Web of Science, Embase, and PsycINFO, focusing on the effects of yoga for informal dementia caregivers compared to passive or active control groups through randomized and non-randomized trials. An initial review reduced 284 to 180 unique records; 172 studies were excluded, leaving 8 that met the inclusion criteria. Two authors independently selected and extracted data using a data extraction sheet based on the Cochrane Consumers and Communication Review Group. The Cochrane Risk of Bias tools (ROB2 and ROBINS-I) were employed to evaluate bias risk.

Results: The review included three randomized and five non-randomized studies with a total of 161 participants, predominantly female (wives and daughters), with ages ranging from 39 to 76 years. Four studies utilized hatha yoga, while four employed non-traditional yoga. Significant improvements were observed in QoL, depression, stress, anxiety, and self-compassion, but not in caregiver burden. Furthermore, positive effects were more pronounced in face-to-face or online interventions than in recorded videos. On average, studies exhibited a moderate risk of bias.

Conclusion: Yoga practice can serve as an effective intervention for enhancing the psychological aspects of dementia caregivers.

Information processing speed (IPS) evaluates the time at which a person reacts to a stimulus. The Wechsler for Adults-III (WAIS-III) includes this domain in the digit symbol test (DS-T).

Objective: The aim of this study was to validate a new screening test that could measure the IPS in association with the individual's age and scholarship.

Methods: A new instrument to measure the IPS was constructed, automatic cashier test (AC-T), and for its validation, the DS-T was also carried out.

Results: The media of time use in the ACT was 12.3 s; the media of hits in the DS-T was 38.8, with a p<0.0001 and R²: 0.40.

Conclusion: P-value showed a linear association between the two tests, but the R² results showed a low association between these. In the same way, the correlation between both tests is promising, since it shows that both are tests that measure the IPS in a different way with different constructs such as the verbal fluency test that is also used to evaluate IPS. On the other hand, both tests exposed that the scholarship positively influences the IPS.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) such as depression, anxiety, and apathy are present in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and are risk factors for cognitive decline. However, the relationship between NPS and specific cognitive domains is less clear.

Objective: This study aimed to assess whether there is a correlation between NPS and specific cognitive domains.

Methods: A cross-sectional study which included 174 participants with MCI, aged 55 years or older. Differences in sociodemographic profile, neuroimaging, and neuropsychological tests between MCI participants with and without NPS were measured.

Results: Participants with NPS had lower education and worse performance in attention tests and executive functions. Psychotic symptoms were correlated with deficits in visuospatial functions; irritability and agitation with inattention and deficit of inhibitory control; and depression with inattention.

Conclusion: Correlations were found between some NPS with specific cognitive domains, especially psychotic symptoms, but also agitation, irritability, apathy, and depression.

The interface between epilepsy and religiosity has been a long-standing matter of debate. Epilepsy has affected several religious leaders throughout history. Hyperreligiosity may be observed in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy as a component of the so-called Gastaut-Geschwind syndrome which involves other behavioral and personality traits such as hyposexuality, viscosity, philosophical concerns, sense of personal destiny, hypergraphy, emotionality, and irritability. Saint Paul, the Apostle, probably had temporal lobe epilepsy. He was a genius man of intellectual excellence and refined culture, whose life and writings exerted a decisive influence on Western history. The current paper investigates the elements of Gastaut-Geschwind syndrome in Saint Paul's life and Epistles and discusses the potential influence of these traits on Pauline theology.

The neuropathological signature of Alzheimer's disease (AD) comprises mainly amyloid plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles, resulting in synaptic and neuronal loss. These pathological structures stem from amyloid dysfunctional metabolism according to the amyloid cascade hypothesis, leading to the formation of plaques, and apparently inducing the initiation of the abnormal tau pathway, with phosphorylation and aggregation of these proteins, ultimately causing the formation of tangles. In this narrative review, the existing hypothesis related to the pathophysiology of AD were compiled, and biological pathways were highlighted in order to identify the molecules that could represent biological markers of the disease, necessary to establish early diagnosis, as well as the selection of patients for therapeutical interventional strategies.

Neurological manifestations of nonketotic hyperglycemia are frequently seen, with mainly symptoms of confusion or coma. While hyperglycemia-induced seizures are less common, isolated aphasic status epilepticus is very rare, difficult to diagnose, and may be unrecognized by clinicians. In this case report, a 51-year-old man who presented with confusion and incoherent speech for two weeks is discussed. He was diagnosed with nonketotic hyperglycemia, whose electroencephalography (EEG) findings were suggestive of isolated aphasic status epilepticus. His magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain showed subcortical T2/FLAIR hypointense lesions with cortical T2/FLAIR hyperintensities and restricted diffusion. Although this condition usually responds well to intensive insulin therapy and fluid replacement, many researchers found some persistent aphasic seizures that did not improve until the addition of anti-seizure medications (ASMs).