Prevalence of Neuropsychiatric Symptoms across the Declining Memory Continuum: An Observational Study in a Memory Clinic Setting

• Main Authors: Meiyan Zhang, Huali Wang, Tao Li, Xin Yu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Karger Publishers 2012-04-01
• Series: Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders Extra
• Subjects: Subjective cognitive impairment; Neuropsychiatric symptoms; Prevalence; Alzheimer’s disease; Mild cognitive impairment
• Online Access: http://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/338410

Aims: The study aimed to compare the frequency of neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) across the declining memory continuum, from normal aging, subjective cognitive impairment (SCI), and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and to explore the clinical correlates of NPS. Method: In a memory clinic, 157 subjects (46 mild AD patients, 38 MCI individuals, 24 SCI subjects, and 49 normal controls) completed the neurobehavioral assessments with the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). The clinical significance of each NPI domain was defined as an item score ≥4. Result: Clinically significant depression was more common in the SCI than in the normal control group (p Conclusion: Across the declining memory continuum, the frequency of NPS was highest among mild AD patients. Depression, apathy, and aberrant motor behavior deserve more attention. Presence of apathy might be an independent determinant for mild AD.