Affective behavioural disturbances in Alzheimer's disease and ischaemic vascular disease

Objectives-To investigate affective change in Alzheimer's disease and ischa emic vascular disease and examine the contribution of white matter disease to psychopathology in these dementias. Based on earlier studies, it was pre dicted that: (1) depression would be more prevalent and severe in ischaemic vascular disease; (2) psychomotor slowing would be more prevalent in ischa emic vascular disease; (3) apathy would be more prevalent in ischaemic vasc ular disease; and (4) The degree of white matter disease would be positivel y correlated with the severity of psychomotor slowing. Methods-Ratings of affective/behavioural states and white matter disease we re compared in 256 patients with Alzheimer's disease and 36 patients with i schaemic vascular disease or mixed dementia with an ischaemic vascular comp onent using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and linear regression models. Results-The findings were: (1) decreased affect/withdrawal was more prevale nt and severe in patients with ischaemic vascular disease and patients with white matter disease; (2) psychomotor slowing was more severe in patients with ischaemic vascular disease and patients with white matter disease; and (3) differences between Alzheimer's disease and ischaemic vascular dementi a groups in the degree of psychomotor slowing were independent of the sever ity of white matter disease. Conclusions-Future studies using structural and functional neuroimaging tec hniques would be helpful for examining the relation between neurobiological factors and affective/behavioural disturbances in dementia.