Clinical and dynamic features of aggressive behavior in patients with multi-infarct dementia depending on its severity

Abstract

The article presents clinical and dynamic features of aggressive behavior in patients with multi-infarct dementia of varying degrees of severity. The study involved 49 patients diagnosed with multi-infarct dementia (F01.1) with varying degrees of severity, the structure of which included aggressive behavior. Clinical and dynamic features of aggressive behavior in patients with multi-infarct dementia were analyzed using clinical anamnestic, clinical follow-up, clinical psychopathological, psychometric, and statistical research methods. The types of aggressive behavior studied, i.e. mixed aggression, verbal aggression, physical aggression, and irritability, were dependent on the severity of multi-infarct dementia. In the patients with mild multi-infarct dementia, aggressive behavior was clinically manifested by irritability with the greatest degree of severity. In addition, the patients showed more severe signs of aggression in the structure of the disease, which were expressed in destructive behavior towards relatives in the form of physical aggression, as well as in the demonstration of verbal aggression. As the severity of multi-infarct dementia increased, the frequency and severity of aggressive behavior decreased. In the patients with severe multi-infarct dementia with signs of aggressive behavior, more pronounced qualitative thought disorders, i.e. unsystematized delusional ideas of reference, were diagnosed. Thus, in patients with multi-infarct dementia, manifestations of aggressive behavior are related to the degree of its severity and represent one of the diagnostic criteria that must be taken into account when assessing the severity of multi-infarct dementia. Moreover, aggressive behavior can be an important target when planning therapeutic tactics duringthe work with such patients.