Posterior Cortical Atrophy in the Asia-Pacific: A Report From the PCA Asian Workgroup

Posterior Cortical Atrophy (PCA) is a distinct dementia syndrome primarily affecting spatial abilities and visual processing. It is associated with degeneration in the posterior part of the brain. PCA is subclassified into PCA-pure and PCA-plus syndromes based on consensus criteria. To address this, the PCA Asia Workgroup was established to study PCA in Asian countries.

The Asia PCA Workgroup collected demographic and clinical data, including symptoms and signs, from PCA patients. Patients were classified into PCA-pure (solely meeting PCA criteria) and PCA-plus (additional features of other neurodegenerative syndromes). The frequency of clinical presentations, symptoms, and signs was compared to the consensus classification estimation and the meta-analysis of published data.

PCA-pure (76.2%) was the most common subtype, with earlier onset (80.95%) and distinct early prominent deficit of executive/memory > visual disturbances which is different from the consensus study has estimated and the meta-analysis of published data. PCA-Lewy body disease (PCA-DLB) exhibited higher frequencies of attention deficits, visual hallucinations, cognitive fluctuations, and rigidity compared to PCA-pure.

This study reveals the real-world clinical presentation of PCA syndrome in an Asian population, emphasizing the differences from consensus estimations and the meta-analysis of published data. Further research is needed to validate these findings and compare them with real clinical data from PCA patients of other ethnicities, in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of PCA worldwide.