Awareness, apathy, and depression in Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment
- PMID: 28413709
- PMCID: PMC5390841
- DOI: 10.1002/brb3.661
Awareness, apathy, and depression in Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment
Abstract
Introduction: Results from studies on awareness disorders in Alzheimer's disease (AD) are controversial because the methodologies, the "objects" of awareness, and the patients' pathologic stage all vary. Our study aimed to compare scores and correlates of awareness according to the stage of the disease and the assessment method.
Methods: We compared 20 mild AD patients to 20 mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients, using the Patient Competency Rating Scale (PCRS; patient vs. caregiver report) and the Self-Consciousness Scale (rating scale). All patients underwent cognitive, psycho-affective and behavioral assessments (global cognition, executive functions, episodic memory, anxiety-depression, and apathy measures).
Results: Groups were matched for age, education, and gender. They were comparable on the depression, anxiety, apathy and awareness scales (ps > .05), and differed for all cognitive variables (p < .05). Using the median split approach, greater apathy and lower depression were associated with poorer awareness on the Self-Consciousness Scale (respectively: odds ratio [OR] = 4.8, p = .03; OR = 4.84, p = .04), and the PCRS (only apathy: OR = 9.3, p = .003). Greater apathy plus lower depression were associated with poorer awareness in both scales (PCRS: OR = 40.5, p = .005; Self-consciousness scale: OR = 28, p = .012).
Conclusion: These results evidence comparable awareness between AD and MCI patients. The correlates were more affective and behavioral than cognitive, independently from assessment method.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; apathy; awareness; depression; mild cognitive impairment.
References
-
- Antoine, C. , Antoine, P. , Guermonprez, P. , & Frigard, B. (2004). Awareness of deficits and anosognosia in Alzheimer's disease. Encephale, 30, 570–577. - PubMed
-
- Beck, A. T. , Steer, R. A. , Ball, R. , & Ranieri, W. (1996). Comparison of Beck Depression Inventories‐IA and ‐II in psychiatric outpatients. Journal of Personality Assessment, 67, 588–597. - PubMed
-
- Bennett, S. , & Thomas, A. J. (2014). Depression and dementia: Cause, consequence or coincidence? Maturitas, 79, 184–190. - PubMed
-
- Benoit, M. , & Robert, P. (2007). Clinical and neurophysiological aspects of depression and apathy. Encephale, 33, 853–855. - PubMed
-
- Conde‐Sala, J. L. , Rene‐Ramirez, R. , Turro‐Garriga, O. , Gascón‐Bayarri, J. , Juncadella‐Puig, M. , Moreno‐Cordón, L. , … Garre‐Olmo, J. (2013). Clinical differences in patients with Alzheimer's disease according to the presence or absence of anosognosia: Implications for perceived quality of life. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, 33, 1105–1116. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical