%0 Journal Article %J J Alzheimers Dis %D 2016 %T Comparing Longitudinal Behavior Changes in the Primary Progressive Aphasias. %A Van Langenhove, Tim %A Leyton, Cristian E %A Piguet, Olivier %A Hodges, John R %X

BACKGROUND: Differentiating between primary progressive aphasia (PPA) variants based on the profile of language deficits can be difficult in a proportion of patients. Further, little is presently know about the pattern of longitudinal changes in behavior in PPA variants.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the presence of behavioral changes in the main variants of PPA: semantic (sv-PPA), nonfluent/agrammatic (nfv-PPA), and logopenic (lv-PPA), and establish the course of these changes over time.

METHODS: We measured behavioral changes in 73 prospectively recruited PPA (30 sv-PPA, 22 nfv-PPA, and 21 lv-PPA), as well as 33 behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bv-FTD) and 31 Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, at baseline and after 1 year, using the Cambridge Behavioural Inventory Revised. All included patients had mild dementia severity at baseline.

RESULTS: Both at baseline and follow-up, sv-PPA exhibited significantly more behavioral disturbances of the type characteristic of bv-FTD compared with other PPA variants. 74% of sv-PPA patients with mild dementia severity exhibited at least one behavior disturbance at baseline, which increased to 84% during follow-up. Behavioral symptoms did not differ between nfv-PPA and lv-PPA groups at baseline. At follow-up, however, empathy loss was significantly more pronounced in nfv-PPA. The prevalence and course of behavioral symptoms in lv-PPA was similar to that found in AD.

CONCLUSIONS: sv-PPA show more prominent FTD-like behavioral disturbances compared with other PPA variants which typically emerge already early in the disease course. Empathy loss may be an important factor that helps differentiating nfv-PPA from lv-PPA. Our results may allow improved prediction of likely progression in behavioral symptoms across the PPA variants.

%B J Alzheimers Dis %V 53 %P 1033-42 %8 2016 Jun 18 %G eng %N 3 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27340847?dopt=Abstract %R 10.3233/JAD-160010