Neuroscience
Gorno-Tempini ML, Rankin KP, Woolley JD, Rosen HJ, Phengrasamy L, Miller BL. Cognitive and behavioral profile in a case of right anterior temporal lobe neurodegeneration. Cortex. 2004 Sep-Dec; 40(4-5): 631-44.
University of California San Francisco Department of Neurology, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Semantic dementia (SD) is a clinical variant of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) characterized by progressive deterioration of semantic memory with relative sparing of other cognitive functions. It is associated with mainly left anterior temporal atrophy, and is also referred to as "left-temporal lobe variant" of FTLD. Recently, patients with mainly right-sided atrophy, or "right-temporal lobe variant"(RTLV), have been described. While some authors have reported that the initial and most significant deficit in these right-sided cases is a difficulty in recognizing famous people, others have observed that major behavioral abnormalities are the presenting symptoms. Here we report a detailed neuropsychological, language, behavioral and neuroimaging assessment of JT, a case of right temporal lobe variant of FTLD. JT showed early and prominent behavioral changes accompanied by a severe impairment in recognizing foods by their look, flavor or name. Later she also developed a difficulty in recognizing familiar people and objects. Standardized caregiver questionnaires of JT's pre- and post-morbid personality and interpersonal functioning showed that she went from being a flexible, dominant, extraverted, person to showing rigid, submissive and introverted behaviors. Her levels of neuroticism significantly increased, while her scores on agreeableness and cognitive and emotional empathy dropped. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) showed most significant atrophy in the right amygdala/anterior hippocampal complex and collateral sulcus, extending to the right insula. We discuss the atypical cognitive and behavioral features of this case of RTLV of FTLD and stress the importance of behavioral changes and atypical semantic deficits for early diagnosis.
PMID: 15505973 [PubMed - in process]
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Neuroscience
Abstract of the Day: Lobar Neurodegeneration
Gorno-Tempini ML, Rankin KP, Woolley JD, Rosen HJ, Phengrasamy L, Miller BL. Cognitive and behavioral profile in a case of right anterior temporal lobe neurodegeneration. Cortex. 2004 Sep-Dec; 40(4-5): 631-44.
University of California San Francisco Department of Neurology, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Semantic dementia (SD) is a clinical variant of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) characterized by progressive deterioration of semantic memory with relative sparing of other cognitive functions. It is associated with mainly left anterior temporal atrophy, and is also referred to as "left-temporal lobe variant" of FTLD. Recently, patients with mainly right-sided atrophy, or "right-temporal lobe variant"(RTLV), have been described. While some authors have reported that the initial and most significant deficit in these right-sided cases is a difficulty in recognizing famous people, others have observed that major behavioral abnormalities are the presenting symptoms. Here we report a detailed neuropsychological, language, behavioral and neuroimaging assessment of JT, a case of right temporal lobe variant of FTLD. JT showed early and prominent behavioral changes accompanied by a severe impairment in recognizing foods by their look, flavor or name. Later she also developed a difficulty in recognizing familiar people and objects. Standardized caregiver questionnaires of JT's pre- and post-morbid personality and interpersonal functioning showed that she went from being a flexible, dominant, extraverted, person to showing rigid, submissive and introverted behaviors. Her levels of neuroticism significantly increased, while her scores on agreeableness and cognitive and emotional empathy dropped. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) showed most significant atrophy in the right amygdala/anterior hippocampal complex and collateral sulcus, extending to the right insula. We discuss the atypical cognitive and behavioral features of this case of RTLV of FTLD and stress the importance of behavioral changes and atypical semantic deficits for early diagnosis.
PMID: 15505973 [PubMed - in process]
- Polka Music And Semantic Dementia: Not Such A Barrel Of Fun
Semantic dementia is a neurodegenerative disorder in the general class of frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Atrophy occurs bilaterally in the anterior temporal lobes, with the left hemisphere affected to a greater extent (Lambon Ralph & Patterson,...
- Regarding The Pain Of Others
That's the title of a book (2003, Farrar, Straus & Giroux) by the late Susan Sontag. ''Let the atrocious images haunt us. Even if they are only tokens, and cannot possibly encompass most of the reality to which they refer, they still...
- Neuropsychology Abstract Of The Day: Mild Cognitive Impairment (mci)
Karas G, Sluimer J, Goekoop R, van der Flier W, Rombouts S, Vrenken H, Scheltens P, Fox N, & Barkhof F. Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment: Structural MR Imaging Findings Predictive of Conversion to Alzheimer Disease. American Journal of Neuroradiology....
- Abstract Of The Day: Dementia
Godbolt AK, Josephs KA, Revesz T, Warrington EK, Lantos P, King A, Fox NC, Al Sarraj S, Holton J, Cipolotti L, Khan MN, & Rossor MN. Sporadic and familial dementia with ubiquitin-positive tau-negative inclusions: Clinical features of one histopathological...
- Abstract Of The Day: Primary Progressive Aphasia (ppa)
Clark DG, Charuvastra A, Miller BL, Shapira JS, Mendez MF. Fluent versus nonfluent primary progressive aphasia: A comparison of clinical and functional neuroimaging features. Brain and Language 2005 Jul; 94(1): 54-60. David Geffen School of Medicine,...