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Evolving Causes of Rapidly Progressive Dementia: A 5-Year Comparative Study
Petros Stamatelos1, Kimonas Kontokostas1, Chrysoula Liantinioti2
11st Department of Neurology, Eginition University Hospital.
Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders
|October 15, 2021
Summary
Rapidly progressive dementia (RPD) causes are shifting, with autoimmune encephalopathy (AE) becoming more frequent. Neurodegenerative diseases remain common but progress slower than non-neurodegenerative causes of RPD.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Neuroscience
- Clinical Medicine
Background:
- Rapidly progressive dementia (RPD) is a syndrome with onset <1-2 years.
- Advances in RPD diagnosis may alter prevalence and causative entity frequencies.
- Previous reports on RPD causes exist for comparison.
Purpose of the Study:
- To estimate the relative frequency of RPD causative entities.
- To incorporate recent diagnostic advances in RPD evaluation.
- To compare current findings with a prior RPD case series.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of 47 patient medical records.
- Patients were referred for suspected RPD over a 5-year period.
- Attikon University Hospital served as the study site.
Main Results:
- Neurodegenerative diseases were the most frequent causes (38%).
- Prion disease (19%) and autoimmune encephalopathy (AE, 17%) were also significant.
- AE cases increased significantly compared to previous reports; other secondary causes decreased.
Conclusions:
- Neurodegenerative diseases are common RPD causes with slower progression than non-neurodegenerative causes.
- Diagnostic advancements facilitate AE recognition.
- Increasing recognition of RPD as a distinct entity may lead to earlier diagnosis of secondary causes.
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