This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Nagaratnam, N. Articles by Mcneil, C. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Nagaratnam, N. Articles by Mcneil, C. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Dementia in the severely aphasic: Global aphasia without hemiparesis—A stroke subtype simulating dementia

Catriona Mcneil, BSc, MBBS

Blacktown-Mount Druitt Health, Blacktown, Australia

Patients with severe aphasia and possible dementia cannot be adequately assessed for want of normative data. We describe four patients with global aphasia without hemiparesis who were referred for evaluation of dementia without the knowledge that they had previously suffered a stroke. All four had no neurological deficits except for language dysfunction. The study looked at the utility of the commonly-used dementia scales in patients with severe aphasia and possible dementia. The findings indicated the limitations of verbal, non-verbal cognitive tests and the reliance on informant reports. Appropriate weighting of these may help in arriving at a more accurate diagnosis. Until guidelines for a reliable criteria are established, the clinician should assess the patient in a global way and not just in one aspect of the patient's symptomatology. Dementia in the severely aphasic remains a diagnostic challenge and merits further study.

American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias®, Vol. 14, No. 2, 74-78 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/153331759901400204


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?