[Senses and dementia : sensory loss and dementia risk].

In the course of several neurodegenerative conditions, the presence of a sensory alteration, even before the appearance of cognitive disorders or complaints concerning autonomy, can potentially lead to earlier diagnosis and more efficient management of these complex patients. The mechanisms underlying the association between sensory impairment and the risk of progression to dementia are increasingly better understood and should ultimately improve the accuracy of the diagnosis process for the most common neurodegenerative conditions, but also participate in the differential diagnosis between these conditions. Finally, early management of these sensory impairments offers a relatively easy way to modify patient's progression by delaying the onset of several symptoms during the progression towards a dementia syndrome.

Sham-controlled randomized multicentre trial of transcranial direct current stimulation for prolonged disorders of consciousness.

Background And Purpose: Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been shown to improve signs of consciousness in a subset of patients with disorders of consciousness (DoC). However, no multicentre study confirmed its efficacy when applied during rehabilitation. In this randomized controlled double-blind study, the effects of tDCS whilst patients were in rehabilitation were tested at the group level and according to their diagnosis and aetiology to better target DoC patients who might repond to tDCS.

Dorsomedial prefrontal metabolism and unawareness of current characteristics of personality traits in Alzheimer's disease.

Anosognosia is a complex symptom corresponding to a lack of awareness of one's current clinical status. Anosognosia for cognitive deficits has frequently been described in Alzheimer's disease (AD), while unawareness of current characteristics of personality traits has rarely been considered. We used a well-established questionnaire-based method in a group of 37 AD patients and in healthy controls to probe self- and hetero-evaluation of patients' personality and we calculated differential scores between each participant's and his/her relative's judgments.

Episodic autobiographical memory in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: what are the neural correlates?

Autobiographical memory in amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI) is characterized by impaired retrieval of episodic memories, but relatively preserved personal semantic knowledge. This study aimed to identify (via FDG-PET) the neural substrates of impaired episodic specificity of autobiographical memories in 35 aMCI patients compared with 24 healthy elderly controls. Significant correlations between regional cerebral activity and the proportion of episodic details in autobiographical memories from two life periods were found in specific regions of an autobiographical brain network.

Valuing one's self: medial prefrontal involvement in epistemic and emotive investments in self-views.

Recent neuroimaging research has revealed that the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) is consistently engaged when people form mental representations of themselves. However, the precise function of this region in self-representation is not yet fully understood. Here, we investigate whether the MPFC contributes to epistemic and emotive investments in self-views, which are essential components of the self-concept that stabilize self-views and shape how one feels about oneself.