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Neuroimaging Studies of the Dwindling Self: Neurodegenerative Dementias

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Abstract

The term dementia was first introduced in the medical literature by the Roman physician Aulus Cornelius Celsus in his treatise De Medicina (20 AD) to indicate a generic pattern of alterations of intelligence and behavior. Until the eighteenth century, however, the term dementia was commonly used as a synonym of madness. In 1838 French psychiatrist Jean-Étienne Dominique Esquirol first distinguished dementia – defined as an acquired process characterized by loss of memory, ability to judge, and attention – from congenital mental deficit. At present, according to DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association. DSM-IV-tr: ­diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th ed, text revision. American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC, 2000), the essential characteristics of dementia include impairment in memory, plus at least in one other cognitive function (language, visuospatial skills, etc.), as well as substantial disturbance of work or social functioning resulting from cognitive deficits. These features should not occur as isolated features of delirium. Nonetheless, from a clinical point of view, the term dementia has to be considered a multifaceted syndrome rather than a single disease.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Michael Trimble Neuropsychiatry Research Group, BSMHFT and University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    Andrea Nani

  2. Department of Neuropsychiatry, Michael Trimble Neuropsychiatry Research Group, BSMHFT and University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    Andrea E. Cavanna

  3. Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders, UCL and Institute of Neurology, London, UK

    Andrea E. Cavanna

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  1. Andrea Nani
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Correspondence to Andrea Nani .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Birmingham, Dept. Neuropsychiatry, Research Group BSMHFT, Vincent Drive 25, Birmingham, B15 2FG, United Kingdom

    Andrea Eugenio Cavanna

  2. University of Birmingham, Michael Trimble Neuropsychiatry, Research Group BSMHFT, Corso Brianza 26, Torino, 10153, Italy

    Andrea Nani

  3. , Department of Neurology, Yale University School of Medicine, Cedar Street 333, New Haven, 06520, Connecticut, USA

    Hal Blumenfeld

  4. , Cyclotron Research Centre, University of Liège, Allée du 6 août 8, Liège, 4000, Belgium

    Steven Laureys

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Nani, A., Cavanna, A.E. (2013). Neuroimaging Studies of the Dwindling Self: Neurodegenerative Dementias. In: Cavanna, A., Nani, A., Blumenfeld, H., Laureys, S. (eds) Neuroimaging of Consciousness. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37580-4_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37580-4_13

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