NEUROPSYCHIATRIC CORRELATES AND TREATMENT OF LENTICULOSTRIATAL DISEASES - A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE AND OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIESIN HUNTINGTONS, WILSONS, AND FAHRS DISEASES - A REPORT OF THE ANPA COMMITTEE ON RESEARCH

This report reviews clinical neuropsychiatric findings and opportuniti es for research in Huntington's, Wilson's, and Fahr's diseases. Consis tent, systematic methodology is lacking among neuropsychiatric studies in these lenticulostriatal diseases. Systematic cross-sectional and l ongitudinal assessments are needed to ascertain the prevalence of psyc hiatric disorders as a function of disease course. Preliminary synthes is of existing data suggests the following heuristic relationships in these diseases: depression with parkinsonian states; personality chang es with caudate or putamen disease; psychosis, impulsivity, and sexual disorders with caudate disease; dementia and mania with caudate and p allidal diseases; and compulsions with pallidal disease. Correlation o f neuropsychiatric findings with disease stage, clinical signs, and ra diologic, metabolic, physiologic, and pathologic markers of disease wi ll add to our understanding of these conditions.