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. 2023 Jan;23(1):52-62.
doi: 10.1111/psyg.12902. Epub 2022 Oct 23.

Neuropsychiatric outcomes and caregiver distress in primary progressive aphasia

Mustafa Seckin  1   2 , Elif Yıldırım  3 , İlayda Demir  4   5 , Ömer Orhun  2 , Ezgi Bülbül  2 , H Aziz Velioğlu  6 , Öget Öktem  7 , Nilüfer Yeşilot  8 , Oğuzhan Çoban  8 , Hakan Gürvit  7
Affiliations

Neuropsychiatric outcomes and caregiver distress in primary progressive aphasia

Mustafa Seckin et al. Psychogeriatrics. 2023 Jan.

Abstract

Background: In this study, we aimed to outline the neuropsychiatric consequences of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and to understand how neuropsychiatric symptomatology affects distress in caregivers.

Methods: The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) including the distress index (NPI-Distress) was used. Additional information about the caregiver burden was obtained using Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI). NPI, NPI-Distress, and ZBI data from 17 patients with a clinical diagnosis of PPA were compared with 10 stroke aphasia patients. Neuropsychiatric symptomatology was investigated based on three clusters; Mood, Frontal/Comportmental, and Psychotic/Disruptive. Additionally, the Activities of Daily Living Questionnaire (ADLQ) was used to outline the functional impairment. Twelve healthy controls were included to compare the neurocognitive test scores with PPA and stroke aphasia groups.

Results: A greater number of neuropsychiatric symptoms were observed in the PPA group compared to the stroke aphasia group. The number of symptoms in Mood, and Frontal/Comportmental clusters were greater than the number of symptoms in Psychotic/Disruptive clusters in the PPA group, whereas no significant relationship between the number of symptoms and symptom clusters was found in the stroke aphasia group. In the PPA group, a strong correlation was found between the NPI-Frequency × Severity scores and the NPI-Distress scores. Moreover, the NPI-Distress scores in the PPA group strongly correlated with the ZBI scores. Scores for anxiety, irritability/lability, and apathy had a stronger correlation with the NPI-Distress scores compared to the other NPI symptoms. The Communication subscale was the most impaired domain in the PPA group. Travel, and Employment and Recreation subscales showed greater functional impairment in the stroke aphasia group compared to the PPA group.

Conclusions: Neuropsychiatric symptoms in PPA in our study were more frequent than previously reported. Furthermore, the distress index of the NPI was not only correlated with the severity of the neuropsychiatric symptoms but also reflected the overall burden on the caregivers in the PPA group.

Keywords: Neuropsychiatric Inventory; behaviour; caregiver burden; primary progressive aphasia; stroke aphasia.

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References

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