title: Clinical correlates of unawareness of deficits among patients with dementia due to Alzheimer's disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To investigate the associations between unawareness of deficits and clinical correlates, including apathy and depression, among patients with dementia due to Alzheimer's disease (AD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-five patients with AD were enrolled. Unawareness of memory deficits and psychosis or behavior problems was assessed. The Apathy Evaluation Scale informant version and the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) were used to measure apathy and depression, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 32 (57.2%) and 27 (49.1%) participants were identified as being unaware of memory deficits and psychosis or behavior problems, respectively. Unawareness of memory deficits was associated with lower scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and higher scores on the CSDD. Unawareness of psychosis or behavior problems was associated with lower scores on the MMSE.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Unawareness of deficits among patients with AD was common. The 2 domains of unawareness showed different characteristics and may possibly present different etiologies.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taiwan Department of Psychology, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yi-Lung
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Occupational Therapy, College of Health Science, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Hui-Mei
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan Graduate Institute of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Mei-Feng
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan Graduate Institute of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan y7552156@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Yi-Chun
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Cheng-Fang
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Yen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung, Taiwan Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Cheng-Sheng
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003863:Depression / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; apathy; depression; unawareness of deficits