Anosognosia in People with Cognitive Impairment: Association with Cognitive Deficits and Behavioral Disturbances

Abstract

Aims: To investigate, in a group of subjects at an early stage of cognitive impairment, the relationship between anosognosia and both cognitive and behavioral symptoms by exploring the various domains of insight. Methods: One hundred and eight subjects affected by cognitive impairment were consecutively enrolled. The level of awareness was evaluated by means of the Clinical Insight Rating Scale (CIRS). Psychiatric symptoms were evaluated using the Italian version of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), whereas memory (memory index, MI) and executive (executive index, EI) functions were explored using a battery of neuropsychological tests and qualified by means of a single composite cognitive index score for each function. Results: A significant positive correlation between the total NPI score and global anosognosia score was found. Furthermore, both the MI and EI scores were lower in subjects with anosognosia than in those without anosognosia (p Conclusions: Our study suggests that, in the early stage of cognitive impairment, anosognosia is associated with both cognitive deficits and behavioral disorders according to the specific functional anatomy of the symptoms.

Keywords

• Dementia
• Anosognosia
• Cognitive impairment
• Behavioral symptoms