Dissertation
Visuoconstructional performance of Alzheimer's, vascular and Parkinson's disease patients on the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Drexel University
1999
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00000730
Abstract
Visuoconstructional deficits are often described in the literature and clinical summaries of patients suffering from dementia. Although visuoconstructional dysfunction is a factor in the diagnosis of dementia, it seems the literature uses this term interchangeably with other constructs such as visuoperceptual and visuospatial skills. As such, there is a lack of a dear definition of the components involved in a 'visuoconstructional deficit'. This study attempted to delineate the underlying neuropathology of visuciconstructional impairment and describe the neuropsychological dysfunction associated with subcortical and cortical dementia patients with constructional deficits. Visuoconstructional skill was assessed by asking a normal control group (n = 14) and patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (n = 26), ischaemic vascular dementia (n = 25), and Parkinson's disease (n = 12) to copy a modified version of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure. Copy condition test performance was scored using criteria described by Stern et al., (1994). The drawings of the normal control group were superior to all dementia participants on gross measures of accuracy, however there was no difference between the normal control and Alzheimer's disease groups with respect to fragmentation, perseverations, or omissions. Alzheimer's disease patients generally outperformed vascular dementia and Parkinson's disease patients. There were few differences between vascular dementia and Parkinson's disease patients. The most striking difference was the Parkinson's disease groups' tendency toward fragmented drawings with numerous perseverations and omissions. Despite severe fragmentation, perseverations and omissions, patients with vascular dementia and Parkinson's disease obtained higher recognition memory scores than Alzheimer's disease patients. Correlational analyses among dementia patients between neuropsychological tests and the copy of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure found that accurate copy of Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure was most consistently correlated with tests of working memory (i.e., tests requiring patients to monitor their behavior and sustain a complex mental set while performing mental manipulations.) Ideas regarding the relationship between working memory and visuoconstructional test performance are discussed.
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Details
- Title
- Visuoconstructional performance of Alzheimer's, vascular and Parkinson's disease patients on the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure
- Creators
- Rhonda Quarnetta Freeman
- Contributors
- Douglas L. Chute (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Number of pages
- x, 123 pages
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Psychology, Sociology, and Anthropology [Historical]; College of Arts and Sciences; Drexel University
- Other Identifier
- 991014970316204721