Severe and Persistent Regressive Behaviour in Three Elderly Subjects without Cognitive Decline

Abstract

The appearance of regressive behaviours in the elderly is relatively common. Among these regressive attitudes, there is a relatively high frequency of situations which mimic dementia in the absence of demonstrable organic alterations that justify the presence of a neurodegenerative profile. These generally stem from a primary psychiatric disorder and are referred to as 'pseudodementia'. All these conditions, which are generally accompanied by a marked increase in dependency on the environment, are distinguished by the presence of cognitive impairment and behavioural traits typical of dementia but which are fully reversible on treatment of the primary psychiatric disorder. Here we describe three cases, characterized by their striking discrepancy between clinical profile, with pronounced behavioural alterations similar to dementia-related conduct disorders, culminating in almost complete dependency on the environment, and almost stably intact cognitive performance (assessed through the MMSE), over a mean observation period of approximately five years