Characterization of theory of mind performance in patients with myotonic dystrophy type 1

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is associated with motor dysfunction as well as psychological and cognitive impairments, including altered social cognition. Theory of mind (ToM) impairments have been reported in this disease but their nature and their cognitive/cerebral correlates have yet to be determined.

Fifty DM1 patients and 50 healthy controls were assessed using the Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition, which quantifies impairments in affective and cognitive components of ToM through the depiction of everyday situations. We also measured the study participants' cognitive, behavioral and social abilities, quality of life, and brain MRI characteristics.

DM1 patients presented a significant impairment in ToM performance compared to controls (p < .001). The patients' errors were related to hypomentalizations (p < .001 vs controls) but not to hypermentalizations (p = .95). The affective component was affected (p < .001 vs controls) but not the cognitive component (p = .09). The ToM impairment was associated with demographic variables (older age and a lower educational level), genetic findings (a larger CTG triplets repeat expansion) and cognitive scores (slower information processing speed). Associations were also found with brain MRI variables (lower white matter and supratentorial volumes) but not with behavioral or social variables.

DM1 patients display a ToM impairment, characterized by predominant hypomentalizations concerning the affective component. This impairment might result from structural brain abnormalities observed in DM1.