Study of Social Behavior and Emotion in Frontotemporal Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease and Controls

Inclusion Criteria

• •The core diagnostic features of bvFTD or NINCDS-ADRDA criteria for clinically probable AD
• •Mild-moderate cognitive and functional severity defined as an MMSE \>/=10 and a CDR \</=2.0
• •Able to understand and complete procedures and to take part in the tests by hearing and understanding instructions and by seeing the stimuli to be responded to
• •Willingness and ability to provide informed consent; Informed consents from caregiver and patient
• •English speaking, having acquired English prior to age 13 and using it as primary language
• •Minimally impaired language (language and semantics tests cut-off scores)
• •Medically stable (defined as absence of medical illness that would interfere with the subject's ability to understand and participate in study procedures)
• •Absence of a neurological or psychiatric illness other than bvFTD or clinically probable ADB
• •Absence of cortical infarction, other cortical lesion, or significant subcortical lesion on MRI of brain
• •Absence of potentially confounding medications, particularly those with effects on the peripheral nervous system, cardiovascular agents, and β-blockers
• •Presence of a caregiver who can facilitate participation in this project. (see below) Where there is more than one caregiver, every effort is made to designate the closest relative as the main caregiver.
• •Personally visit and interact with the subject at least one time each week for one hour.
• •Accompany the subject to each visit.
• •Provide opinions about the subject's thinking (i.e., memory, language, problem-solving ability), daily activities (i.e., dressing, hygiene, mobility, household chores, and hobbies), and behavior (i.e., mood, sleep patterns, appetite, participation in social interactions).
• •Share personal information including feelings of distress about the subject's behavior or feelings of burden by caregiving responsibilities.
• •Read, understand and speak English fluently in order to ensure comprehension of informed consent form and informant-based assessments of the subject.
• •Provide full written informed consent on his/her own behalf prior to the performance of any protocol-specific procedure.
• •In the opinion of the investigator, the study partner will be compliant with the protocol and have a high probability of completing the study
• •Denies neurological or psychiatric illness.
• •Not currently a caregiver for a dementia patient (for at least one year).
• •Does not take potentially confounding medications, including most of those with effects on the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system, cardiovascular agents, and β-blockers. The use of these medications will be assessed during a telephone screening.