Cognitive dysfunction in cerebellar disorders

Abstract

Introduction: Cerebellum is involved not only in motor but also in behavioral and cognitive functions. Cerebellar contribution to non-motor functions has been supported by several animal, human and functional neuroimaging studies. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the role of the cerebellum in cognition in patients with cerebellar disorders and to compare with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: It is Case Control study. 30 cases with cerebellar lesions due to vascular, degenerative, and post infective cause and 30 controls matched for age, sex, and years of education were chosen. International Cooperative ataxia rating scale(ICARS) used to quantify cerebellar dysfunction and Neuropsychological assessment was performed with Rey’s Complex Figure Test, Trial Making Test, Rey’s Auditory Verbal Learning Test, Stroop Interference Test, Digit span tests, Controlled Oral Word association Test, and Animal Naming Test. Statistics Analysis: Measures of central tendency and dispersion, tests of significance used for statistical analysis (SPSS version 21.0) Results: Cases showed deficits in executive function, verbal memory, fluency and attentional processes. Further analysis revealed that cases with bilateral degenerative cause were in general more impaired than those with unilateral vascular lesions. Conclusion: Altogether, this study confirms that cerebellar damage is associated with significant cognitive impairments. These deficits are correlated with an overall moderate impact on patient’s autonomy. Our data favour an indirect participation of the dorsolateral prefrontal and posterior parietal cortical areas to the cerebrocerebellum circuit. Keywords: Cerebellum, Cognition, ICARS-International Cooperative Ataxia Rating Scale, Neurocognitive Dysfunction