Pure word deafness and pure anarthria in a patient with frontotemporal dementia

Authors: Iizuka, O.¹; Suzuki, K.¹; Endo, K.²; Fujii, T.¹; Mori, E.¹

Source: European Journal of Neurology, Volume 14, Number 4, April 2007 , pp. 473-475(3)

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Abstract:

A 66-year-old right-handed man developed pure anarthria following pure word deafness. In addition to language disorders, his behavior gradually changed and finally included violence against his wife. Brain magnetic resonance imagings revealed atrophy of the left perisylvian area, which included the inferior half of the precentral gyrus and the upper portion of the superior temporal gyrus, consistent with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). It has been documented as either a disorder of expressive language or as an impaired understanding of word meaning. Unlike with pure anarthria, pure word deafness is not included in the clinical diagnostic current criteria for FTD. However, a large variety of language symptoms can appear in FTD according to the distribution of pathological changes in the frontotemporal cortices. This case suggests that pure word deafness could be a prodomal symptom of FTD.

Keywords: frontotemporal dementia; pure anarthria; pure word deafness

Document Type: Short communication

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-1331.2007.01671.x

Affiliations: 1: Department of Behavioral Neurology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan; and 2: Department of Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan

Publication date: 2007-04-01