Cognitive Disorders

Big things are happening in Alzheimer disease research. Recent developments are shaping the future for assessment and diagnosis and allowing for early detection and treatment of the disease.

We have the target protein for Alzheimer, the antibody to knock out the protein, and the imaging test locating the protein in the brain, but there still remains one problem . . . who should receive the antibody?

Despite the prevalent perception that cognitive decline in the aged population is inevitable, researchers with Northwestern University's SuperAging Project are finding that "excellent memory capacity in late life is a biological possibility."

The presence of a psychiatric diagnosis does not necessarily indicate lack of decisional capacity.

Which of the following complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies may have beneficial effects on symptoms of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer disease (AD)?

While there are currently no treatments for AD, it is important to examine what we are treating. By the time AD is diagnosed by clinical symptoms, 8 to possibly 15 years of pathological damage has already occurred.

Research is needed to define clinical biomarkers and genetic screens that could be used to identify early stages of dementia and to link clinical syndromes with the later development of dementia.

This article reviews methods to rehabilitate cognition in schizophrenia and suggests strategies for instituting a cognitive remediation program.

Autism is demanding increased attention by professional and lay audiences; prevalence seems to be increasing. There are differing opinions about whether the increase is due to greater recognition and reporting, diagnostic expansion and substitution, or increasing acceptability.

Depression, cognitive impairment, and disability often coexist in older adults. Therefore, to effectively treat late-life depression, clinicians need to evaluate the presence and degree of the patient’s cognitive deficits and level of disability.

At the end of life, psychiatrists are often asked to assess a patient’s capacity to refuse treatment, but the role of the psychiatrist in this situation is much broader.

My “most important achievement to date” is that I’m capable of even the simplest forms of basic cognition. I can remember, perceive, speak, feel, think, solve, and-sometimes-pay attention.

This article reviews the differences between dementia types and future directions.

It is widely accepted that patients with schizophrenia have some degree of cognitive deficiency and that cognitive deficits are an inherent part of the disorder. Historically, there has been less focus on cognitive deficits in patients with bipolar disorder; however, numerous studies of cognition in patients with bipolar disorder, including several comprehensive meta-analyses of bipolar patients who were euthymic at the time of testing, have recently been undertaken.1-4 Each of these analyses found that cognitive impairment persists during periods of remission, mainly in domains that include attention and processing speed, memory, and executive functioning.4

From this book’s title, iBrain, I expected to learn about the positive impact of the computer world on the ever-evolving brain. I was in for a surprise. iBrain is a nuanced account of brain anatomy and function, brain plasticity, the impact-good and bad-of the Internet and Web access on the brain, and how to have a healthy brain and life in the face of our technological world. The book is written by psychiatrist-neuroscientist Gary Small, MD, director of the Memory and Aging Research Center at UCLA, and his wife, Gigi Vorgan, a film and television actor and writer. Small and Vorgan have a linear, easy-to-understand writing style that includes entertaining and educational case vignettes.

Mr A is a 73-year-old resident of a nursing home, where the irate aides describe him as “a liar and a troublemaker.” Mr A’s “stories” were regarded by the staff as deliberate mischief on his part.

Over the past century, the syndrome currently referred to as ADHD has been conceptualized in relation to varying cognitive problems including attention, reward response, executive functioning, and other cognitive processes.

Any person who once “drew a blank” during an exam is familiar with the horrors of cognitive difficulties: that terrible moment is for most of us so rare that it remains a traumatic memory for years to come. Imagine those who suffer from protracted cognitive difficulties.

Subjective complaints of impaired concentration, memory, and attention are common in people with major depressive disorder (MDD), and research shows that a variety of structural brain abnormalities are associated with MDD.1 These findings have intensified the interest in quantitative assessment of cognitive and neuropsychological performance in patients with mood disorders. Many studies that used standardized cognitive tests have found that mild cognitive abnormalities are associated with MDD and that these abnormalities are more pronounced in persons who have MDD with melancholic or psychotic features

Many people assume that it is the emotional and psychotic symptoms that make it difficult for a person with schizophrenia to function in everyday life. In fact, research indicates that cognitive impairment is a major reason why functional outcome is so poor.1

Fibromyalgia syndrome is a chronic condition that consists of a pervasive set of unexplained physical symptoms with widespread pain (involving at least 3 of 4 body quadrants and axials) of at least 3 months duration and point tenderness at 9 bilateral locations (Figure) as the cardinal features.1 Patients with FM report a set of symptoms, functional limitations, and psychological dysfunctions, including persistent fatigue (78.2%), sleep disturbance (75.6%), feelings of stiffness (76.2%), headaches (54.3%), depression and anxiety (44.9%), and irritable bowel disorders (35.7%).1 Patients also report cognitive impairment and general malaise, “fibro fog.” This pattern of symptoms has been reported under various names (such as tension myalgia, psychogenic rheumatism, and fibro­myositis) since the early 19th century.

One recent survey found that more than 1 in 4 patients who have mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were receiving cholinesterase inhibitors in Italian AD treatment centers even though these medications were being used "off-label."

Many recall the phrase "To know syphilis is to know medicine." Now Lyme disease (Lyme borreliosis), the new "great imitator," is the ultimate challenge to the breadth and depth of our knowledge. In psychiatry, we generally treat mental symptoms or syndromes rather than the underlying cause of a disorder.

Depression is primarily a mood disorder, but it can also be viewed as a cognitive disorder for many older adults.

A recent 4-year study linked apathy to a hastened decline in persons with Alzheimer disease (AD). Another recent study found that persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were more likely to convert to AD a year later if they also had apathy.

In many ways, the frustration experienced bypatients struggling with mild cognitive impairment(MCI) is matched by the frustration ofclinicians facing the challenge of managing thisheterogeneous condition. The prognosis can bevariable, and no proven therapies exist.

There is growing evidence that individuals with bipolar affective disorder have cognitive impairments, even during periods of symptom remission.

Positron emission tomography (PET) of the brain using an enhanced chemical marker has the ability to differentiate among normal aging, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer disease (AD). Researchers writing in the New England Journal of Medicine said the technique is "potentially useful as a noninvasive method to determine regional cerebral patterns of plaques and tangles associated with Alzheimer's disease."

Depression and cognitive impairment are common in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) but often are overlooked. These complications affect not only general quality of life but also complicate core symptoms of the disease. Depression in MS is well documented and easily treated while cognitive impairment sometimes needs a sharper eye to detect.

By now, many clinical researchers and practitioners recognize the strong association between cognitive impairment and type 2 diabetes, which, in its early stages, is characterized by hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance. Although this relationship has not been observed uniformly, more than 20 large-scale epidemiologic studies have reported a link between type 2 diabetes and in creased risk of cognitive impairment and dementia, including Alzheimer disease (AD), the most common type of dementia.