Early-onset Alzheimer dementia superimposed on schizophrenia: a rare case report

ABSTRACT

Disorganized behavior is a primary sign of schizophrenia. Yet it is not unique to schizophrenia. Recently, there has been a growing understanding that endogenous mental disorders could be a prodromal stage of neurodegenerative dementia. As a result, the connection between endogenous mental disorders and dementia has become a subject of significant interest. In the present study, a 49-year-old female with schizophrenia since the age of 17 was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease after a detailed examination with PET and cerebrospinal fluid, despite suspicion of organic disease due to progressive forgetfulness, abnormal behavior and delusions. Schizophrenia is not the only disorder in which disorganized behavior is seen. When such a clinical phenomenon develops, other possible causes should be considered. Dementia is one of the most important of these causes. In a psychiatric disorder with disorganized behavior, other possible causes, especially dementia, should be considered.

KEYWORDS:

• Comorbidity
• dementia
• disorganised behavior
• psychosis
• PET imaging

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Prof.Dr.Mehmet Aydın, head of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at Bezmialem Vakif University, for his help with PET images and interpretation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author, [M.E.B.]. The data are not publicly available due to their containing information that could compromise the privacy of research participants.

Authors’ contributions

M.E.B.: study conception and design, acquisition of case history, analysis and interpretation of data, drafting of the manuscript; E.U.: study conception and design, acquisition of case history.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Patient consent

Informed consent has been obtained from the patient’s relatives for publication of this case.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.