Self-Inflicted Head Injury in Behavioral Variant Frontotemporal Dementia with Compulsive Behaviors: A Case Report

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Neurology
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Repetitive compulsive excoriation rituals can lead to severe physical complications like osteomyelitis and empyema.
• Patients may exhibit profound personality changes, apathy, loss of empathy, and executive dysfunction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a case study of a patient with symptoms suggestive of behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD).
• To emphasize the importance of differentiating bvFTD from other psychiatric diagnoses.
• To highlight the role of neuroimaging in diagnosing bvFTD.

Main Methods:

• Clinical case presentation of a 56-year-old male.
• Review of patient history including behavioral changes and cognitive deficits.
• Neuroimaging analysis including Brain MRI and 18F-FDG PET scans.

Main Results:

• The patient developed osteomyelitis and empyema secondary to compulsive excoriation.
• Neuroimaging revealed asymmetric right lateral ventricle enlargement, right hippocampal volume loss, and right hemisphere hypometabolism.
• The clinical presentation and neuroimaging findings were most consistent with bvFTD.

Conclusions:

• The case underscores the diagnostic challenge in distinguishing bvFTD from psychiatric disorders.
• Accurate early diagnosis of bvFTD is critical for appropriate management.
• Further research is needed to enhance early diagnostic capabilities for bvFTD.