Recent developments in the neuropsychology of dementia

Abstract

The paper reviews recent experimental studies of cognition in dementia, focusing primarily on Alzheimer's disease (AD). Neuropsychological deficits are related to structural and functional brain changes. In particular, the dysexecutive syndrome in Alzheimer's disease (Morris, 1984; Morris & Baddeley, 1988) is explained in terms of lack of synchronous activity between the different association areas of the cortex. The review also explores the nature of the episodic and autobiographical deficits, relating episodic memory dysfunction in terms of mesiotemporal lobe damage that occurs early on in AD. Attentional dysfunction, language and semantic processing are also discussed and, finally, the heterogeneity of cognitive dysfunction even within distinct etiological groups.