Comparison of Neuropsychological Assessment by Videoconference and Face to Face.

Objective: To compare the administration of neuropsychological tests by teleneuropsychology (TeleNP) and face to face (F-F) in order to determine the feasibility and reliability of TeleNP.

Method: At the inclusion visit, all participants underwent a traditional F-F neuropsychological assessment as part of their standard care. Four months after inclusion, they were randomized to undergo an additional neuropsychological assessment either by F-F administration or by TeleNP.

Atrophy, metabolism and cognition in the posterior cortical atrophy spectrum based on Alzheimer's disease cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers.

Introduction: In vivo clinical, anatomical and metabolic differences between posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) patients presenting with different Alzheimer's disease (AD) cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers profiles are still unknown.

Methods: Twenty-seven PCA patients underwent CSF examination and were classified as 1) PCA with a typical CSF AD profile (PCA-tAD; abnormal amyloid and T-tau/P-tau biomarkers, n = 13); 2) PCA with an atypical AD CSF profile (PCA-aAD; abnormal amyloid biomarker only, n = 9); and 3) PCA not associated with AD (PCA-nonAD; normal biomarkers, n = 5). All patients underwent clinical and cognitive assessment, structural MRI, and a subset of them underwent brain F-FDG PET.

Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test - accuracy for the differential diagnosis of Alzheimer's and neurodegenerative diseases: A large-scale biomarker-characterized monocenter cohort study (ClinAD).

Introduction: The International Working Group recommended the Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT) as a sensitive detector of the amnesic syndrome of the hippocampal type in typical Alzheimer's disease (AD). But does it differentiate AD from other neurodegenerative diseases?

Methods: We assessed the FCSRT and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers in 992 cases. Experts, blinded to biomarker data, attributed in 650 cases a diagnosis of typical AD, frontotemporal dementia, posterior cortical atrophy, Lewy body disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal syndrome, primary progressive aphasias, "subjective cognitive decline," or depression.

Cognitive dissonance resolution depends on episodic memory.

The notion that past choices affect preferences is one of the most influential concepts of social psychology since its first report in the 50 s, and its theorization within the cognitive dissonance framework. In the free-choice paradigm (FCP) after choosing between two similarly rated items, subjects reevaluate chosen items as more attractive and rejected items as less attractive. However the relations prevailing between episodic memory and choice-induced preference change (CIPC) remain highly debated: is this phenomenon dependent or independent from memory of past choices? We solve this theoretical debate by demonstrating that CIPC occurs exclusively for items which were correctly remembered as chosen or rejected during the choice stage.

Functional Connectivity of Ventral and Dorsal Visual Streams in Posterior Cortical Atrophy.

Background: Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA) induces progressive dysfunction of ventral and dorsal visual networks. Little is known, however, about corresponding changes in functional connectivity (FC).

Objectives: To investigate FC changes in the visual networks, their relationship with cortical atrophy, and the association with Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology.

Partial deletions of the GRN gene are a cause of frontotemporal lobar degeneration.

Mutations in the progranulin gene (GRN) are an important cause of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Most known GRN mutations are null mutations, such as nonsense and frameshift mutations, which create a premature stop codon resulting in loss of function of the progranulin protein. Complete or near-complete genomic GRN deletions have also been found in three families, but heterozygous partial deletions that remove only one or two exons have not been reported to date.

Population pharmacokinetic approach to evaluate the effect of CYP2D6, CYP3A, ABCB1, POR and NR1I2 genotypes on donepezil clearance.

Aims: A large interindividual variability in plasma concentrations has been reported in patients treated with donepezil, the most frequently prescribed antidementia drug. We aimed to evaluate clinical and genetic factors influencing donepezil disposition in a patient population recruited from a naturalistic setting.

Methods: A population pharmacokinetic study was performed including data from 129 older patients treated with donepezil.

Population pharmacokinetic study of memantine: effects of clinical and genetic factors.

Background And Objective: Memantine, a frequently prescribed anti-dementia drug, is mainly eliminated unchanged by the kidneys, partly via tubular secretion. Considerable inter-individual variability in plasma concentrations has been reported. We aimed to investigate clinical and genetic factors influencing memantine disposition.

A genome-wide study reveals rare CNVs exclusive to extreme phenotypes of Alzheimer disease.

Studying rare extreme forms of Alzheimer disease (AD) may prove to be a useful strategy in identifying new genes involved in monogenic determinism of AD. Amyloid precursor protein (APP), PSEN1, and PSEN2 mutations account for only 85% of autosomal dominant early-onset AD (ADEOAD) families. We hypothesised that rare copy number variants (CNVs) could be involved in ADEOAD families without mutations in known genes, as well as in rare sporadic young-onset AD cases.

Early disturbances of gamma band dynamics in mild cognitive impairment.

Recent studies have indicated that gamma band oscillations participate in the temporal binding needed for the synchronization of cortical networks involved in short-term memory and attentional processes. To date, no study has explored the temporal dynamics of gamma band in the early stages of dementia. At baseline, gamma band analysis was performed in 29 cases with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) during the n-back task.

Electrophysiological markers of rapid cognitive decline in mild cognitive impairment.

Electroencephalography (EEG) is an easily accessible and low-cost modality that might prove to be a particularly powerful tool for the identification of subtle functional changes preceding structural or metabolic deficits in progressive mild cognitive impairment (PMCI). Most previous contributions in this field assessed quantitative EEG differences between healthy controls, MCI and Alzheimer's disease(AD) cases leading to contradictory data. In terms of MCI conversion to AD, certain longitudinal studies proposed various quantitative EEG parameters for an a priori distinction between PMCI and stable MCI.

The concept of mild cognitive impairment: relevance and limits in clinical practice.

Subtle cognitive impairments without dementia are common in the elderly population and numerous nosological entities have been proposed for their classification. The concept of mild cognitive impairment has become increasingly popular both in clinical practice and in research. It has been developed to describe a transitional zone between the cognitive changes of normal aging and early Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia.

Psychometric properties of the Doloplus-2 observational pain assessment scale and comparison to self-assessment in hospitalized elderly.

Objectives: Self-report is the "gold standard" for pain assessment, however, observational pain scales, such as Doloplus-2 must be used for patients who cannot communicate. In this follow-up study, we report the psychometric properties of the observational Doloplus-2 scale using the visual analog scale (VAS) pain score as a gold standard and evaluate its performance.

Method: Prospective clinical study of 180 hospitalized older patients who demonstrated good comprehension and reliable use of the VAS: 131 participants with dementia and 49 without.

Structured assessment of mental health status in psychogeriatrics: validity of the French HoNOS65+.

Objective: To assess the reliability, validity, and feasibility of a French version of the Health of the Nation Outcome Scales for Elderly People (HoNOS65+).

Method: Twenty mental health professionals completed the scale for 126 elderly patients. We assessed interrater reliability in inpatient and outpatient settings, together with construct and discriminant validity, as well as concurrent validity compared with several widely used clinical instruments.

Decreased theta event-related synchronization during working memory activation is associated with progressive mild cognitive impairment.

Background: Among the different quantitative electroencephalographic markers, theta activity is known to reflect neural resources involved in memory processes and directed attention. Previous studies suggested that synchronization likelihood analysis in theta-band frequency might be a sensitive method to identify early alterations of neuronal networks in mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Methods: We report here a longitudinal study of 24 MCI patients with theta event-related synchronization (ERS) analysis during the n-back working memory task and neuropsychological follow-up after 1 year.

Pain in severe dementia: self-assessment or observational scales?

Objectives: To assess the performance of self-assessment scales in severely demented hospitalized patients and to compare it with observational data.

Design: Prospective clinical study.

Setting: Geriatrics hospital and a geriatric psychiatry service.

[Crisis intervention in dementia].

A crisis is an episode of acute disorganization with apparition of symptoms, leading the individual and his relatives to have recourse to the health system in emergency. It refers to a period of intra-psychic or interpersonal balance discontinuity. The management of the crisis, as it was proposed in psychiatric models since the seventies, aims not only to provide a psychological and immediate answer but also to use this crucial moment as an opportunity of change.

Early event-related potential changes during working memory activation predict rapid decline in mild cognitive impairment.

Background: The conversion of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer's disease is associated with substantial compromise of neocortical circuits subserving rapid cognitive functions such as working memory. Event-related potential (ERP) analysis is a powerful tool to identify early impairment of these circuits, yet research for an electrophysiological marker of cognitive deterioration in MCI is scarce. Using a "2-back" activation paradigm, we recently described an electrophysiological correlate of working memory activation (positive-negative working memory [PN(wm)] component) over parietal electrodes.

[What is dementia? 1. The patient's perspective].

The dementia conveys representations in term of loss, loss of knowledge, loss of cognition, loss of autonomy, loss of awareness of the deficits, with for consequencies a loss of exchanges and social withdrawal. Because of the difficulty for the patient to communicate his (her) feelings, it is difficult to understand his (her) experience of living. The analysis of speech through interviews realized with Alzheimer'disease patients, shows that the person who feels to enter a shape of abnormality, suffers from the loss of control of his/her existence, change of the relationships with the circle of acquaintances, other people's opinion, and social stigmatisation.

Metabolic correlates of behavioral and affective disturbances in frontal lobe pathologies.

Objective: Although previous studies have shown that the human frontal cortex is involved in the experience of emotions as well as in social behavior, data regarding the exact anatomical substrates of behavioral and affective deficits in frontal lobe pathologies are still scarce. The aim of this study was to investigate the metabolic correlates of these deficits in a group of non-selected consecutive patients with frontal lobe lesions.

Patients And Methods: Clinicometabolic correlations between several emotional and social parameters and metabolic patterns in the frontal cortex and amygdala were investigated in 32 patients with frontal lobe pathologies.

Specific BACE1 genotypes provide additional risk for late-onset Alzheimer disease in APOE epsilon 4 carriers.

Alzheimer disease (AD) is characterized neuropathologically by neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques. A key component of plaques is A beta, a polypeptide derived from A beta-precursor protein (APP) through proteolytic cleavage catalyzed by beta and gamma-secretase. We hypothesized that sequence variation in genes BACE1 (on chromosome 11q23.

Neuropathological analysis of an adult case of the Cornelia de Lange syndrome.

Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CDLS) is a rare multisystemic malformative syndrome of uncertain etiology characterized by severe psychomotor and mental retardation. Here we report the neuropathological analysis of a 35-year-old patient who displayed the classical clinical symptomatology of CDLS. A congenital dysgenesis of the brain was evident including abnormal convolution patterns of the cerebral gyri, frontal lobe hypoplasia and focal lack of myelination in layers V and VI of the left temporal cortex.