Sarcasm could hold the key to early diagnosis
Researchers have found that people with the behavioural form of frontotemporal dementia are unable to detect negative emotions and sarcasm.
Researchers from the University of New South Wales have identified that people with the behavioural form of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are unable to detect sarcasm.
They now hope that this information will help improve early detection of the condition.
FTD is the second most common form of dementia found in people under the age of 65, yet it is frequently misdiagnosed.
It may also be much more common in those who are over 65 than is currently believed.
“People with FTD become very gullible and they often part with large amounts of money,” said lead researcher, UNSW Professor John Hodges.
“This research goes towards explaining why they behave the way they do. They are not able to pick up the subtleties of communication.”
Using video technology, the researchers also showed that people with frontotemporal dementia performed poorly when reading negative emotions.
“This is significant because if care-givers are angry, sad or depressed, the patient won’t pick this up,” said Professor Hodges.
“It is often very upsetting for family members. We hope this work will help them understand what is going on.”
The researchers were able to demonstrate that the changes in emotion correlated to brain shrinkage in three closely integrated brain regions.
