Affiliations: [a]
Department of Neurology, Tianjin Huanhu Hospital, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cerebrovascular and of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Tianjin Dementia Institute, Tianjin, China
| [b]
Department of Neurology, Aviation General Hospital, Beijing, China
| [c]
Department of Neurology, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, China National Clinical Research Center for Neurological Diseases, Beijing, China
Correspondence:
[*]
Correspondence to: Yong Ji, MD, PhD, Department of neurology, Tianjin Huanhu Hospital, 6 Jizhao road, Jinnan District, Tianjin 300350, China. Tel.: +86 13612048681; E-mail: jiyongusa@126.com.
Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.
Abstract: Background:Autonomic dysfunction is supportive clinical feature for diagnosis of prodromal dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Objective:To compare the features of autonomic symptoms in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to Lewy bodies (MCI-LB) and Alzheimer’s disease (MCI-AD). Methods:Autonomic symptoms were evaluated in the MCI-LB and MCI-AD patients using the Scales for Outcomes in Parkinson’s disease for autonomic symptoms (SCOPA-AUT). Results:Thirty patients with MCI-LB and 90 patients with MCI-AD were recruited. The frequency of autonomic dysfunction was higher in patients with MCI-LB compared to the MCI-AD patients (80% versus 54.4%, p = 0.013) and the gastrointestinal symptoms were predominant (73.3% versus 35.6%, p < 0.001). Salivation, constipation, incontinence, incomplete emptying, lightheadedness when standing up or standing for some times, diurnal or nocturnal hyperhidrosis, and sexual dysfunction were more severe and protracted in the MCI-LB group compared to the MCI-AD group. Conclusion:The MCI-LB patients showed higher frequency and severity, as well as longer duration of autonomic symptoms compared to the MCI-AD group. These symptoms can facilitate early diagnosis of patients with DLB.
Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, autonomic symptoms, dementia with Lewy bodies, early diagnosis, SCOPA-AUT
