Frontiers in Psychiatry (Apr 2023)

A review of current evidence for mild behavioral impairment as an early potential novel marker of Alzheimer’s disease

  • Piaopiao Jin,
  • Jiaxi Xu,
  • Zhengluan Liao,
  • Yuhan Zhang,
  • Ye Wang,
  • Wangdi Sun,
  • Enyan Yu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1099333
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14

Abstract

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Mild behavioral impairment (MBI) is a neurobehavioral syndrome that occurs in the absence of cognitive impairment later in life (≥50 years of age). MBI is widespread in the pre-dementia stage and is closely associated with the progression of cognitive impairment, reflecting the neurobehavioral axis of pre-dementia risk states and complementing the traditional neurocognitive axis. Despite being the most common type of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) does not yet have an effective treatment; therefore, early recognition and intervention are crucial. The Mild Behavioral Impairment Checklist is an effective tool for identifying MBI cases and helps identify people at risk of developing dementia. However, because the concept of MBI is still quite new, the overall understanding of it is relatively insufficient, especially in AD. Therefore, this review examines the current evidence from cognitive function, neuroimaging, and neuropathology that suggests the potential use of MBI as a risk indicator in preclinical AD.

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