Language Disorders Associated with Dementia of the Alzheimer Type: A Review

Abstract

Dementia of the Alzheimer type is a disorder of growing medical importance. As a consequence of the increase in the proportion of the population comprised of elderly people, recent years have seen an increase in the number of studies reported in the literature devoted to investigation of the language abilities of demented patients. The present paper reviews the current understanding of the language problems associated with Alzheimer's disease. The areas of language deficit are outlined. Theories relating to the presence of semantic versus perceptual deficits proposed by various authors to explain the occurrence of language disturbance in Alzheimer's dementia are discussed. The characteristics of the language impairment in dementia of the Alzheimer type are compared to those of various aphasia syndromes.