A Case of Fronto-Temporal Dementia (FTD) Masquerading as Mood Disorder

ABSTRACT

A 56-year old Chinese female was referred to an academic medical center with atypical, treatment-resistant depression that continued for approximately 3 years after her sister’s death.

Comprehensive evaluation including neurocognitive testing, EEG, spinal tap, HIV testing and brain MRI revealed behavioral variant of fronto-temporal dementia (bvFTD) with significant frontal and temporal lobe atrophy.This patient’s unusual clinical presentation emphasizes the overlap between depression and bvFTD, and underlines the importance of prompt, accurate diagnosis to minimize often-ineffective pharmacological interventions and caregiver burnout.

KEYWORDS:

• Dementia
• frontal-lobar degeneration
• mood disorder
• treatment-resistant depression

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge Dr. J. Wallman, MD, who kindly offered his expertise in radiology, reviewed MRI images and provided his opinion, and Ms. E. M. J. Palmer for language editing. We thank the patient and her husband, who provided their written informed consent for publication of this report, which was reviewed by the departmental Oversight Committee of the Xijing Hospital. The authors declare no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this article.