Apathy: A Syndrome with Neuroanatomic Correlates

Imaging in patients with Parkinson disease reveals a distinct metabolic pattern for apathy and may eventually lead to new treatment approaches.

Apathy is a distinct neuropsychiatric syndrome that differs from depression. It manifests with reduced interest and motivation, not with sadness. These researchers used positron emission tomography to examine the anatomic correlates of apathy in 45 patients with Parkinson disease (PD) who had neither depression nor dementia. All participants had been recommended for deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus. The imaging results were correlated with ratings on an apathy scale.

Only eight patients (17.8%) met clinical criteria for apathy. Apathy scores were correlated positively with metabolism of the right inferior and middle frontal gyrus, right cuneus, and left anterior insula. Negative correlations were found between apathy scores …

Reviewing Author

Jonathan Silver, MD

Disclosures

RoyaltiesTextbook of Traumatic Brain Injury, 2nd and 3rd editions

Editorial BoardsUpToDate; Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesNorth American Brain Injury Association (Board Member); National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (Chair of Data Monitoring Safety Board for study of donepezil on cognition after traumatic brain injury)

Jonathan Silver, MD

Disclosures

RoyaltiesTextbook of Traumatic Brain Injury, 2nd and 3rd editions

Editorial BoardsUpToDate; Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience