Trends in Cognitive Decline by Dementia Subtype 

 
   Lead Investigator:    Ariel Frankel
   Institution      :    USC
   E-Mail           :    afrankel@usc.edu
   Proposal ID      :    77


   Publications:


1  Frankel A
   Patterns of Cognitive Decline by Dementia Subtype
   2011   Dissertation  Doctoral Dissertation, Alliant International University, Los Angeles , 

   DEFENDED





   Proposal Description:
   Hypothesis #1: The rate of change will not be the same among presenting dementia subtypes.    Specific Aim 1: The rate of cognitive decline will be determined according to each dementia subtype. We will use established clinical diagnoses from the NACC database and measures of each cognitive domain from the neuropsychological battery to assess the trends in decline over time.     Hypothesis #2: The presenting type of dementia will predict the cognitive domain(s) in which deterioration is most rapid over time.     Hypothesis #2A: The greatest rate of decline will be found in memory recall amongst patients diagnosed with Possible and Probable Alzheimer???s Disease.     Hypothesis #2B: The greatest rate of decline will be found in memory recall and attention amongst patients diagnosed with Dementia with Lewy Bodies.     Hypothesis #2C: The greatest rate of decline will be found in executive function amongst patients diagnosed with probable Vascular Dementia.    Hypothesis #2D: The greatest rate of decline will be found in executive function and verbal fluency amongst patients diagnosed with Fronto-Temporal Dementia.    Specific Aim 2: We will assess changes in variables that measure memory (logical memory I  II, logical memory II-logical memory I retention), executive function (digit span backward, trails B), language (animals, vegetables, boston naming test), psychomotor speed (trails A, digit symbol), and attention (digit span forward) for each type of dementia.