The Cognitive Disorders Unit of Lleida shows the worsening of Alzheimer's patients after five weeks of confinement

The Cognitive Disorders Unit of Lleida, located in the University Hospital of Santa Maria, has shown the worsening of neuropsychiatric symptoms of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment during the five weeks of confinement. In a study published in the European Journal of Neurology, researchers B. Beatriz Lara, Anna Carnes, Farida Dakterzada, Ivan Benitez and Gerard Piñol-Ripoll, from the Clinical Neuroscience research group, analyzed the impact of epidemic in 40 patients in the unit.

Agitation, apathy, and motor activity are the symptoms that have been most affected in people with Alzheimer's disease and amnesic mild cognitive impairment. The 40 patients, 20 diagnosed with Alzheimer's and 20 diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, had undergone an evaluation the month before confinement, and after five weeks of confinement, were reassessed by telephone using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) and EuroQol-5D to assess neuropsychiatric symptoms and quality of life of patients and caregivers. These tests include questions from different areas such as mobility, personal care, pain, or depression. The results show that approximately 30% of patients and 40% of caregivers reported a worsening of their health status.

Article:

B. Beatriz Lara, Anna Carnes, Farida Dakterzada, Ivan Benitez, Gerard Piñol-Ripoll, Neuropsychiatric symptoms and quality of life in Spanish Alzheimer's disease patients during COVID-19 lockdown, European Journal of Neurology, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1111/ene.14339.