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Relationship between dementia and depression: a case series

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 July 2023

A. Izquierdo De La Puente ,
P. del Sol Calderón ,
R. Fernández Fernádez ,
A. Rodríguez Rodriguez ,
M. Vizcaíno Da Silva ,
M. Martín García  and
O. Médez Gonzalez
A. Izquierdo De La Puente*
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro de Majadahonda, Majadahonda
P. del Sol Calderón
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro de Majadahonda, Majadahonda
R. Fernández Fernádez
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Infanta Cristina, Parla
A. Rodríguez Rodriguez
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario HM Mostoles, Mostoles
M. Vizcaíno Da Silva
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, CSM Sal Carlos de El Escorial, El Escorial, Spain
M. Martín García
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro de Majadahonda, Majadahonda
O. Médez Gonzalez
Affiliation:
Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro de Majadahonda, Majadahonda
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Four cases are presented who debut with depressive episodes and after close follow-up, are diagnosed and treated for Alzheimer’s disease

Objectives

The aim of this case series is to give a brief review of the depressive prodrome of dementia.

Methods

Four women, aged 67-77 years, treated on an outpatient basis, consulted for depressive symptoms. In addition to affective symptoms such as apathy, lack of interest, sadness, increased emotional lability and anhedonia, all three reported cognitive impairment. In their follow-up after two years, they became progressively more dependent on their partners, with more memory lapses, forgetfulness and progressive loss of higher cognitive functions. With the progression of cognitive impairment, anxious symptoms have become increasingly present.

Results

The mean age of the patients is 70 years. Two of them had an insidious onset of depressive symptoms, while the other two had a psychotic onset of depression. None of the patients had no previous history of depression. All four were started on antidepressant treatment with little response. Following the diagnosis of cognitive impairment, treatment was started with rivastigmine, with an adequate response.

Conclusions

Dementia and depression are very common in the elderly. It appears that up to 40% of patients with dementia have depressive symptoms. It appears that depression in old age may actually be a prodromal symptom of dementia.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 66 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 31st European Congress of Psychiatry , March 2023 , pp. S825
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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