[Disinhibition in psychogeriatry: differential diagnosis with frontotemporal dementia]

Disinhibition is the loss of psychological and physiological inhibition that leads to cognitive and motor impulsivity. The notion of impulsiveness is often linked to the function of the prefrontal cortex, and is usually understood as a lack of response inhibition. In other words, the subject is unable to suppress or withhold a previously rewarding response and the behavior appears impulsive. This has a social impact as disinhibition often affects the human social behavior. The "human social behavior" is how a person behaves properly with other people in a social environment. Frontotemporal Dementia produces changes in patients' behavior that frequently, manifest as disinhibition. Patients' social cognition is impaired and this is one of the key points for early diagnosis. All of these concepts will be review for a better understanding of Frontotemporal Dementia, and therefore, being able to differentiate it from other psychogeriatric disorders.