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Review
. 2010 Nov;10(6):484-90.
doi: 10.1007/s11910-010-0140-4.

The new classification of primary progressive aphasia into semantic, logopenic, or nonfluent/agrammatic variants

Michael F Bonner  1 , Sharon Ash, Murray Grossman
Affiliations
Review

The new classification of primary progressive aphasia into semantic, logopenic, or nonfluent/agrammatic variants

Michael F Bonner et al. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2010 Nov.

Abstract

Primary progressive aphasia (PPA), typically resulting from a neurodegenerative disease such as frontotemporal lobar degeneration or Alzheimer's disease, is characterized by a progressive loss of specific language functions with relative sparing of other cognitive domains. Three variants of PPA are now recognized: semantic variant, logopenic variant, and nonfluent/agrammatic variant. We discuss recent work characterizing the neurolinguistic, neuropsychological, imaging and pathologic profiles associated with these variants. Improved reliability of diagnoses will be increasingly important as trials for etiology-specific treatments become available. We also discuss the implications of these syndromes for theories of language function.

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