title: Awareness of deficits in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease: do MCI patients have impaired insight?
abstract: In this study we investigated impaired awareness of cognitive deficits in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Very few studies have addressed this topic, and methodological inconsistencies make the comparison of previous studies difficult. From a prospective research program 36 consecutive patients with mild AD (MMSE above 19), 30 with amnesic MCI and 33 matched controls were examined. Using three methods for awareness assessment we found no significant differences in the level of awareness between MCI and AD. Both groups had impaired awareness and significant heterogeneity in the clinical presentation of awareness. The results demonstrate that subjective memory problems should not be a mandatory prerequisite in suspected dementia or MCI, which makes reports from informants together with thorough clinical interview and observation central when assessing suspected dementia disorders.
authors.affiliation: Memory Disorders Research Unit, Neuroscience Centre, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark. vogel@rh.dk
authors.forename: Asmus
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vogel
authors.forename: Jette
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stokholm
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gade
authors.forename: Birgitte Bo
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Andersen
authors.forename: Anne-Mette
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Hejl
authors.forename: Gunhild
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Waldemar
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D001364:Awareness; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon