Neuro-cognitive Disorders

Question 1

Vascular dementia

Answer 1

• Impaired judgement and decision making
• Initial symptoms may include difficulties in planning and organization

Question 2

Lewy-body dementia

Answer 2

• Impaired reasoning and memory
• Initial symptoms: sleep disturbances, hallucinations, bradykinesia, balance deficit

Question 3

Frontotemporal dementia

Answer 3

• Noticed by changes in personality and social behaviour
• Difficulties with language, developing into aphasia

Question 4

Delirium

Answer 4

• Disturbance in attention and awareness
• Develops over a short period of time (hours to days)
• Usually fluctuates in severity across the day
• May lead to additional disturbance in cognitive function
• Affected skills: memory, orientation, language, visuospatial skills

Etiology:
- Substance intoxication
- Substance withdrawal
- Medical condition

Question 5

Corticobasal degeneration (CBD)

Answer 5

Idiopatic

Main motor symptoms:
- Similar to PD
- Starts unilateral developing to bilateral
- Dyspraxia
- Dysarthrophonia
- Dysphasia

Main cognitive/behavioural symptoms:
- Dementia
- Paranoia and hallucinations are usually pharmacologically induced

Question 6

Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP)

Answer 6

Idiopathic; likely related to oxidative stress

Main motor symptoms:
- Ophthalmoplegia
- Bradykinesia
- Rigidity
- Nuchal dystonia

Main cognitive/behavioural symptoms:
- Dementia

Question 7

Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD)

Answer 7

• Depression
• Delusions
• Agitation
• Hallucinations
• Apathy
• Disturbances of the circadian rhythm
• Amnesia

Question 8

Alzheimer’s disease

Answer 8

Progressive neurodegenerative disease

Pathophysiology:
- Formation of senile plaques of ß-amyloid in the body of some neurons in the PFC areas
- And formation of neurofibrillary tangles, that disrupt the conduction of neuron impulses, leading to apoptosis