Cognition and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
- 1 August 2007
- journal article
- review article
- Published by SAGE Publications in American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias®
- Vol. 22 (4), 300-312
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1533317507301613
Abstract
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is classically described as a pure motor disease; however, there is growing evidence of a range of cognitive impairment. Cognitive abnormalities include deficiencies in frontal executive skills, varying from mild deficits to meeting criteria for diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Cognitive impairment occurs in sporadic and familial forms of ALS. Patients may present with cognitive deficits before, after, or at the onset of motor neuron disease. Structural and functional imaging studies have shown extramotor cortical degeneration corresponding to levels of frontal executive impairment on neuropsychologic testing. In addition, ALS and a subset of FTD patients display common pathological findings on immunohistochemistry staining. It is believed that these disorders represent a continuum between motor and nonmotor cortical degeneration. The purpose of this article is to review the literature on cognitive deficits in ALS. Identifying changes in cognition is critical for physicians and caregivers of ALS patients, as cognitive decline may interfere with patient compliance. Diagnosis and treatment of cognitive symptoms in ALS patients may improve quality of life.Keywords
This publication has 82 references indexed in Scilit:
- An Observational Study of Cognitive Impairment in Amyotrophic Lateral SclerosisArchives of Neurology, 2006
- Prevalence and patterns of cognitive impairment in sporadic ALSNeurology, 2005
- Mitochondrial failures in Alzheimer's diseaseAmerican Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias®, 2004
- A longitudinal study of the evolution of cognitive function and affective state in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosisAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 2004
- The effect of non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) on cognitive function in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): a prospective studyJournal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 2001
- Amyotrophic Lateral SclerosisNew England Journal of Medicine, 2001
- Cognitive change in motor neurone disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (MND/ALS)Journal of the Neurological Sciences, 2000
- Nonverbal visual attention, but not recognition memory or learning, processes are impaired in motor neurone diseaseNeuropsychologia, 1996
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Recent insights from genetics and transgenic miceCell, 1995
- The relationship between abnormalities of cognitive function and cerebral activation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A neuropsychological and positron emission tomography studyBrain, 1993