Pseudodementia twelve years on.
This paper reports a longitudinal study of 19 patients diagnosed as having pseudodementia more than a decade earlier. In only one patient was the earlier diagnosis changed to definite dementia and, in this patient, there were strong indicators that such a diagnosis should have been made initially. In a second patient, dementia could not be excluded. The remaining patients did not show evidence of a dementing illness and the courses of the illnesses resembled the primary psychiatric disorders responsible for the pseudodementia. The results validate the clinical utility of the term "pseudodementia".
Sachdev
P S
PS
Neuropsychiatric Institute, Prince Henry Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
Smith
J S
JS
Angus-Lepan
H
H
Rodriguez
P
P
D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005162:Factitious Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019965:Neurocognitive Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis