Opportunities of applying neuropsychological research methods in Alzheimer's disease (in terms of a clinical case)

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of cognitive deficits due to loss of synaptic connections in people over 65, reaching 80% of cases of dementia. Despite the rich and productive history of AD study, there are many gaps, especially in the plane of the clinical features of AD course. Objective: a clinical review conducted from the modern standpoint of evidence-based psychiatric practice, based on the observation of the progressive course of cognitive decline in AD disease. A clinical example of a neuropsychological study of a patient with probabilistic AD (diagnosis according to ICD-10: F00.1 Dementia in AD with late onset G30.1+) with interpretation of the obtained data is presented. The patient underwent therapy at the Center for the Treatment of Memory Disorders of the FSBI V.M. Bekhterev National Medical Research Center for Psychiatry and Neurology of Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation (St. Petersburg). The results of a comprehensive neuropsychological examination of the patient indicate intellectual-mnestic decline, visual-spatial disturbances, visual object agnosia, secondary acalculia of the prefrontal type, spatial-constructive apraxia, modal-nonspecific neurodynamic disorders. Cognitive impairment of moderate severity was revealed. According to the results of the assessment on three scales, the following points were obtained: The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) - 12 points, the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) - 11 points, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) - 13 points and 7 points. Topical diagnosis of brain damage: the results of neuropsychological examination indicate pathological functioning of the frontal (prefrontal and mediobasal) parts of both hemispheres of the brain with the involvement of the parietooccipital structures in the pathological process, interest in the process of the hypothalamic-pituitary and diencephalic-brainstem structures of the brain. Thus, a neuropsychological study of mental functions in patients with memory disorders from the standpoint of a biopsychosocial approach details not only cognitive deficits, but also the degree of loss of social functions.