Cognitive impairment in Wilson's disease

• Main Author: Frota,Norberto Anizio Ferreira
• Publication Date: 2009
• Other Authors: Caramelli,Paulo, Barbosa,Egberto Reis
• Format: Article
• Language: eng
• Source: Dementia & Neuropsychologia
• Download full: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1980-57642009000100016
• topic: Wilson's disease; cognition; dementia.

Abstract Wilson's disease (WD) or hepatolenticular degeneration is a rare, genetic and systemic disease, caused by a deficit in the metabolism of copper, leading to its accumulation in different organs, mainly the liver, followed by the central nervous system, especially the basal ganglia. When symptoms begin between the second and third decades of life, approximately 50% of the patients show neurological symptoms. Although dystonia and dysarthria are the most common neurological signs, cognitive changes have been reported since the first cases were described in 1912. Memory change is one of the most common impairments, but other cognitive changes have been reported, including dementia in untreated cases. In this article we review the cognitive changes in WD patients and the occurrence of dementia.