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Depression Help (Home) > Related Disorders > Pick’s Disease Pick's Disease: Symptoms and TreatmentPick's disease is a relatively rare, degenerative brain illness that causes dementia. Arnold Pick published the first description of the disease in 1892. Until recently it was thought that Pick's disease could not be distinguished from Alzheimer's disease during life. Consequently, it has been little studied, and much less is known about it than about Alzheimer's disease. Pick's disease differs from Alzheimer's disease in several ways. First, the two diseases produce different abnormalities in the cells of the brain. "Pick bodies" mark pick's disease, rounded, microscopic structures found within affected cells. Neurons swell, taking on a "ballooned" appearance. Neither of these changes appears in Alzheimer's disease, and the pathology of Alzheimer's disease (plaques and tangles) is not found in Pick's disease. Secondly, Pick's disease is usually sharply confined to the front parts of the brain, particularly the frontal and anterior temporal lobes. This contrasts with Alzheimer's disease, which is more widely distributed. The two diseases also produce different neurochemical changes in the brain. These basic differences between Alzheimer's disease and Pick's disease mean that the two tend to produce somewhat different symptoms. In contrast to Alzheimer's disease, in which early memory loss predominates, the first symptoms of Pick's disease are often personality change, and a decline in function at work and home. Personality change may take the form of apathy and indifference toward customary interests, or of disregard for social decorum and for the feelings of others. Poor social judgment, inappropriate sexual advances, or a coarse and jocular demeanor may be seen. Function declines because the patient simply does very little, or displays confusion and poor judgment. Patients may not be highly forgetful. Often times the patient performs well when directed to do something, but cannot undertake the very same thing independently. What is lost is the ability to initiate, organize, and follow through on even very simple plans and familiar activities. As the illness advances, difficulties with language become common. Patients become unusually quiet, and when they do speak it may be slowly, in brief sentences. They may labor to make the sounds of words and their speech may sound distorted. Some become extremely apathetic -- they may sit for hours doing nothing at all unless prompted to do so by another, while others become extraordinarily restless, and may pace unceasingly. Some patients are hypersexual, and some, like a small child, may place anything they pick up in their mouths. Gluttonous eating occurs in some cases. Attention span is poor; patients seem to be distracted instantly by anything that they hear or see. Later in the disease, patients usually become mute. Restlessness gives way to profound apathy and the patient may not respond at all to the surrounding world. Eventually, they enter a terminal vegetative state. Pick's disease usually begins after age 40 and is less common after age 60. It is a disease that invariably worsens. The average course is about 5 years, but it ranges from 2-15 years. It is rare, accounting for between 1% and 5% of dementia. The diagnosis of Pick's disease is difficult during life, because its symptoms are so variable and because they overlap so much with Alzheimer's disease. A CT or MRI scan may show a pattern of atrophy that suggests Pick's disease, and neuropsychological testing may be helpful. In our experience, the experimental brain scanning techniques with PET and SPECT can be revelatory. However, it is very hard to be certain even with an extensive evaluation; Alzheimer's disease can produce the symptoms described above, and Pick's disease may produce symptoms typical of Alzheimer's disease. In all cases, it is critical to obtain a good evaluation in order to rule out treatable conditions that can cause these symptoms. Unfortunately, neither the cause nor cure for Pick's disease is known. A few studies suggest that Pick's disease may have a genetic component, but most family members are unaffected. Other risk factors are unknown. The treatment of the disease is essentially the same as that of Alzheimer's disease; supervision and assistance for the patient aimed at maximizing his or her quality of life, medications to manage particular symptoms, and emotional and substantive support for the caregiver. The Alzheimer's Association and its network of support groups are an excellent source of help in facing this difficult illness. Symptoms of pick's diseaseThe symptoms for pick's disease are usually the same through all sufferers but some will progress through the symptoms faster then others and they will eventually need 24 hour care to make sure that they do not experience any problems when they are asleep or awake during the day. There are a lot of symptoms for pick's disease from speech problems to changes in eating habits. A patient that is in the early stages of pick's disease will also experience a personality change and that might make them more aggressive or even rude and impatient. Their attention will also change as they will find it hard to maintain a conversation for a long period of time and they will become easily distracted. Not all of these symptoms have to be present before someone can become diagnosed with pick's disease. Instead it can only take a few of these symptoms to pop up before anyone will notice a significant change. Some people may not even become worried by the change and they may think that it is natural for a person to start to be a bit forgetful when they are slightly older. But when these symptoms get worse it is then that they will be taken to the doctor for a diagnosis. Pick's disease TreatmentThere is no known medication to help people that suffer from Pick's disease. No patients are even recommended to take medication before doctors fear that it can make the patient more aggressive. If the patient is having speech troubles then there is a speech therapist that can help them try to regain some of their speech. It is also common for a sufferer of pick's disease to par take in a new hobby such as rug making, art or even music as this can be helpful to the patient. Doctors do not suggest trying to change the patient by trying to acknowledge the specific problems with the patient. Some symptoms will show up in one patient while another patient will suffer from other symptoms.
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