Cognitive dysfunction in idiopathic and vascular parkinsonism.

Aim: To evaluate the characteristics of cognitive disturbances in patients with parkinsonism and to point out the need of following up those changes by highly specific tests.

Methods: The first group consisted of patients with Parkinson's disease, and the second group of patients with vascular parkinsonism. The neuropsychological assessments were performed with mini mental state examination (MMSE) and the Raven progressive matrices.

Results: The MMSE has shown a higher percentage of patients with vascular parkinsonism who had dementia. For evaluating the nonverbal possibilities, the aim of understanding the complex situation and the visual perception, the Raven's progressive matrices were used showing that in both groups of the patients those specific changes were highly present.

Conclusions: It was concluded that MMSE and Raven's progressive matrices have to be obtained in early phases of the disease, and have to be repeated to follow up the therapy effect.