Logopenic syndrome in posterior cortical atrophy

Abstract

Few language disorders have been reported in posterior cortical atrophy (PCA). Furthermore, no study has focused on screening for them and described these language deficits. The goal of this work was to describe linguistic examination of PCA patients and the impact of language disorders on neuropsychological performances compared to patients with other neurodegenerative syndromes and control groups. Linguistic examination of 9 PCA patients was carried out. The neuropsychological performance of the PCA group (16 patients) in the RAPID battery tests was compared with performances of patients with a logopenic variant of primary progressive aphasia (LPPA), patients with Alzheimer's disease and patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment, as well as the control group. A "logopenic syndrome" with anomia, fluency impairment, and length-dependent deficit was found in 8/9 PCA patients. A comparison with other neurodegenerative syndromes showed that not only visual disorders but also language and verbal short-term memory disorders, such as those found in LPPA, can explain neuropsychological performances. A "logopenic syndrome" is frequently found in PCA and may be associated with poor performance on other verbally mediated neuropsychological tasks (e.g., verbal memory). Specific logopedic rehabilitation should be offered to these patients.