The Cognitive Profile of Mild Cognitive Impairment Due to Dementia With Lewy Bodies—An Updated Review

Abstract

Objective: Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) is the second most common type of neurodegenerative dementia. Yet, the domain-specific cognitive impairment of the mild cognitive impairment (MCI) phase of this disease (DLB-MCI) is still not been established. This article gives an updated review on the neuropsychological profile of DLB-MCI, building on the findings from a previous review.

Methods: We performed systematic review and searched five different electronic databases (Scopus, Cochrane, EMBASE, MEDLINE, and PsycINFO) in May 2020 based on a PICO scheme. Our search was then restricted to articles published in 2019 and 2020. Ending up with a total of 90 articles to be reviewed by abstract and/or full text.

Results: In total four papers were included, whereof only one met our full inclusion criteria. Despite a substantial heterogeneity, our findings indicate that DLB-MCI patients have a pattern of executive, visuospatial, and attentional deficits.

Conclusion: The findings indicate that the neuropsychological profile of DLB-MCI is characterized by executive, visuospatial, and attentional deficits. Furthermore, the shortage of studies clearly underlines the paucity of published research into DLB-MCI and emphasizes the need for well-controlled studies.