Emotional and Behavioral Symptoms in Neurodegenerative Disease: A Model for Studying the Neural Bases of Psychopathology

DOI Web Site 3 Citations
  • Robert W. Levenson
    Department of Psychology and Institute of Personality and Social Research, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720;
  • Virginia E. Sturm
    Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco 94158, California;
  • Claudia M. Haase
    School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208;

Description

<jats:p>Disruptions in emotional, cognitive, and social behavior are common in neurodegenerative disease and in many forms of psychopathology. Because neurodegenerative diseases have patterns of brain atrophy that are much clearer than those of psychiatric disorders, they may provide a window into the neural bases of common emotional and behavioral symptoms. We discuss five common symptoms that occur in both neurodegenerative disease and psychopathology (i.e., anxiety, dysphoric mood, apathy, disinhibition, and euphoric mood) and their associated neural circuitry. We focus on two neurodegenerative diseases (i.e., Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia) that are common and well characterized in terms of emotion, cognition, and social behavior and in patterns of associated atrophy. Neurodegenerative diseases provide a powerful model system for studying the neural correlates of psychopathological symptoms; this is supported by evidence indicating convergence with psychiatric syndromes (e.g., symptoms of disinhibition associated with dysfunction in orbitofrontal cortex in both frontotemporal dementia and bipolar disorder). We conclude that neurodegenerative diseases can play an important role in future approaches to the assessment, prevention, and treatment of mental illness.</jats:p>

Journal

Citations (3)*help

See more

Details 詳細情報について

Report a problem

Back to top