Life events, personality and dementia

Etiopathogeny of dementia is presently considered as multidimensional, involving genetic, biological and psychological factors. This study was aimed to find out if life events and personality are risk factors for dementia and varied according to the type of dementia. 54 subjects meeting the DSM IV criteria for dementia were included and compared to 54 cognitively controls. 25 patients had dementia of Alzheimer type, 17 frontotemporal dementia and 12 vascular dementia. Data collection was performed using various questionnaires filled in by the patients and caregivers: questionnaire EVVIE for life events, the French version of the personality traits (VKP) for the assessment of personality, a questionnaire for diagnosing alexithymia (EFEA), the mini-geriatric depression scale for depression, and the Neuropsychiatric Inventory for behavioural disorders. Cognitive function was assessed by the Mini Mental State Examination, and the Global Deterioration Scale. Significant differences were found between people suffering from dementia and controls for the frequency and impact of several life events occurred during childhood, marital or professional life. Some qualitative but no quantitative differences in life events experienced were found between patients with different types of dementia. People suffering from dementia had significant personality traits higher than controls such as passivity, avoidance, obsessive features and alexithymia. However, no difference was found in personality traits between subjects with the different types of dementia. These results suggest that psychosocial cumulative stress and personality could constitute a risk factor for dementia, which could be mediated by a dysregulation in the HPA axis.