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Perseverative writing errors in a patient with Alzheimer's disease
J Neils-Strunjas1, J Shuren, D Roeltgen
1Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Cincinnati, OH 45221-0379, USA.
Brain and Language
|July 22, 1998
Summary
Alzheimer's disease patients with dysgraphia may struggle with writing, especially in cursive. Impaired peripheral writing mechanisms, not central language issues, likely cause these specific letter and stroke perseveration errors.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Alzheimer's disease (AD) often impacts cognitive functions, including writing.
- Dysgraphia, a writing disorder, can manifest in various ways.
- Perseveration, the repetition of a particular response, is a known symptom in some neurological conditions.
Observation:
- A patient with moderate dementia due to Alzheimer's disease exhibited significant perseveration on strokes and letters during writing tasks.
- Letter formation errors were frequently observed.
- Oral spelling abilities were notably better than written spelling performance.
Findings:
- The patient's habitual cursive writing style was more susceptible to perseverations than writing in uppercase letters.
- Central (linguistic) spelling processes appeared relatively preserved.
- The observed pattern suggests an impairment in the peripheral mechanisms responsible for generating graphic motor patterns.
Implications:
- Damage to peripheral orthographic mechanisms may underlie writing deficits in some Alzheimer's disease patients.
- Understanding these specific writing impairments can aid in diagnosing and managing AD.
- This highlights the importance of considering different writing modalities (cursive vs. uppercase) when assessing patients.