VARIABLES WHICH DISTINGUISH PATIENTS FULFILLING CLINICAL-CRITERIA FORDEMENTIA WITH LEWY BODIES FROM THOSE WITH ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE

Objectives. To compare patients fulfilling clinical criteria for Lewy body dementia with those meeting clinical criteria for Alzheimer's dis ease. Design. Prospective cohort study. Setting. Psychiatric services and a memory clinic. Sample. 124 patients with DSM-III-R dementia. Mea sures. The assessment included the GMS/HAS/SDS package, the CAMCOG, th e Cornell Depression scale and the Burns Symptom Checklist. Dementia w as diagnosed according to DSM-III-R, NINCDS ADRDA, McKeith, Byrne, Hac hinski and HAS AGECAT criteria. Results. Patients meeting McKeith et a l. criteria for senile dementia of Lewy body type were significantly m ore likely to have clouding of consciousness, significant Parkinsonian symptoms and less severely impaired recent memory than patients with NINCDS ADRDA Alzheimer's disease. Each of these variables also disting uished patients meeting Byrne et al.'s criteria for dementia with Lewy bodies from those with a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. Concluions . It is suggested that one set of criteria could encompass those overl apping groups of patients. Work is needed to further develop the diagn ostic criteria for Lewy body dementia. ((C) 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)