Impact of depression on insight into memory capacity in patients with Alzheimer disease.

Background: The influence of depressive symptoms on awareness of memory disturbances in patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) and metamemory is unknown.

Objective: We compared the level of awareness of memory disturbances in AD patients with and without depression using 2 measures: a questionnaire comparing discrepancies in patients/caregivers' assessments and the patients' predictions of their own performances on a memory task.

Methods: AD patients with depression (n=21) or without depression (n=21) were asked to complete an assessment of self-reported memory dysfunction (Short Memory Questionnaire; SMQ) and memory task performance prediction (10-words-recall Questionnaire). In addition, the caregivers' evaluations of the memory deficits in the study patients were assessed using the SMQ.

Results: We observed a greater discrepancy in the SMQ scores given by the caregivers' and the patients' among AD patients without depression, compared with those with depression. A greater discrepancy was also observed in the ratio score (patient's predicted performance/actual performance) for the 10-words-recall Questionnaire in AD patients without depression than in those with depression.

Conclusions: AD patients with depression may estimate their memory ability either more accurately or more negatively than AD patients without depression, as shown using the above 2 methods.