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. 2012:2012:209570.
doi: 10.1155/2012/209570. Epub 2012 Mar 1.

Effects of anosognosia on perceived stress and cortisol levels in Alzheimer's disease

Genevieve Arsenault-Lapierre  1 , Victor Whitehead, Sonia Lupien, Howard Chertkow
Affiliations

Effects of anosognosia on perceived stress and cortisol levels in Alzheimer's disease

Genevieve Arsenault-Lapierre et al. Int J Alzheimers Dis. 2012.

Abstract

Anosognosia, or unawareness of one's own cognitive deficits, may cause issues when measuring perceived stress and cortisol levels in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). The goal of this study was to examine the effects of anosognosia on perceived stress and salivary cortisol levels in normal elderly (NE) adults, MCI individuals, newly diagnosed AD patients, and long-lasting AD patients, suspected to show more anosognosia. An anosognosia index for perceived stress was computed by subtracting the score on the Perceived Stress Scale measured in the participants and their relative. Cortisol levels were measured four times a day over two nonconsecutive days. Greater anosognosia for dementia correlated with greater anosognosia for perceived stress in the group as a whole. However, no correlation between cortisol levels and either anosognosia for dementia or perceived stress was observed. Our results suggest that measuring perceived stress in AD patients may be influenced by anosognosia.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scores on anosognosia for dementia, anosognosia for perceived stress, and cortisol levels in normal elderly, individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment, newly diagnosed, and long-lasting Alzheimer's disease patients. These graphs represent the scores on anosognosia for dementia (ANO), anosognosia for perceived stress (PSS), and cortisol levels (CORT, in μg/dL) in 21 normal elderly (NE, black bars), 20 individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI, dark grey bars), 12 newly diagnosed (new AD, light grey bars), and 17 long-lasting (old AD, white bars) Alzheimer's disease patients.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relationship between anosognosia for dementia and anosognosia for perceived stress in normal elderly, individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Alzheimer's disease patients. This graph represents the lack of association between the scores on anosognosia for dementia (ANO) and on anosognosia for perceived stress (PSS) in all the subjects. PSS is calculated as a difference score on the PSS-10 as reported by the participants themselves versus the PSS-10 as reported by their relatives.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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