Logopenic Progressive Aphasia and its characterisation

In this week’s show Dr Anna Volkmer takes the chair to talk with Shalom Henderson and Dr Siddharth Ramanan from the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit (CBU) at the University of Cambridge, discussing their research on Understanding Logopenic Variant Primary Progressive Aphasia (lvPPA).
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A little about lvPPA
People with lvPPA have increasing trouble thinking of the words they want to say. As time goes on, people with lvPPA have more trouble getting the words out, and they eventually begin to speak slower and slower.
The cause of lvPPA is unknown, we do know that in lvPPA there is a large build-up of amyloid and tau within brain cells, like in Alzheimer’s disease. As more and more proteins form in brain, the cells lose their ability to function and eventually die. This causes the affected parts of the brain, most often the left posterior temporal cortex and inferior parietal lobe, to shrink.
Most people with lvPPA start to have symptoms in their 50s, although some people have shown signs earlier or later.
While speech production skills are spared, people with lvPPA gradually have more trouble finding the words they want to use. For example, they may often pause to find the right word. They may develop problems with working memory, and as a result, they might have increasing difficulty repeating sentences and phrases, or following lengthy instructions. They may also begin to have some trouble naming people and objects. People with lvPPA generally do not lose the ability to understand words, as is the case in the semantic variant.
Later in the disease, people with lvPPA may have such difficulty finding words that they might stop speaking completely. Difficulties with memory may develop or get worse, and reading and writing may become harder. Sometimes, later symptoms of lvPPA include getting lost or having trouble recognising people.
lvPPA is a disease that changes with time. A person with lvPPA can live many years with the disease, although this can vary from person to person.
Whilst there are no drug treatments to speak of, Speech and Language Therapists such as our guests today are working on ways to better understand this disease, and to find ways to support people living with it, and their carers and family members to support them.
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You can find out more about our panellists, and their work on our website:
www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.a...
A transcript of this podcast is also available here:
www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/podcast-understanding-logopenic-variant-primary-progressive-aphasia
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[@LeaNelson-gp2nz]

I have lvPPP. I also have a PhD. I do not have any non-verbal neurological problems nor phonological difficulties. Mine is purely language. I have had it for 5 years now. And I think my language recall ability might be improving--yes improving. But this still has to be scientifically tested. I have started Dale Denisen's protocol. He is the author of The End of Alzheimers.

[@ki-rort]

Thank you for sharing updated information on LvPPA.

[@DementiaResearcher]

Our pleasure!

[@bernardwinn1817]

My girlfriend has PPA. I got so many questions. But does it affect her ability to walk. Lose interest in things. Course she has a sweet tooth now. Lose affection kissing.She’s an assistant living now. And I go see her twice a week. She has no interest in anything except french fries, blueberry muffins. Onion rings etc. can you please give me some answers to this. Thank you

[@kimgloria6094]

What are the very early symptoms?. I think I may have PPA.

[@DementiaResearcher]

Hi Gloria, this booklet from Alzheimer's Research UK shares details on symptoms and difference types of PPA. But the most important thing would be to visit your family doctor and discuss with them:
www.alzheimersresearchuk.org/wp-content/plugins/mof_bl_0.2.9/downloads/PPA-0421-0423_WEB.pdf

[@bernardwinn1817]

PS one thing you did not touch on, what is the Latter stages of PPA.

[@DementiaResearcher]

Thanks Bernard, we're planning to revisit this topic again too and also look at swallowing difficulties, and I will be sure to ask Anna to consider the later stages for discussion.

[@bernardwinn1817]

@@DementiaResearcher Thank you. I need to know the latter stages. She has no problem swallowing. But she has a sweet tooth. And she has a hard time walking now. I don’t know if that’s related to PPA or not

[@wrsk.7014]

@@bernardwinn1817 ​ This is kind of similar to my mom’s case. She was first diagnosed around 6months ago that she has CBD(corticobasal degeneration). At the time, her way of walking ,eating ,was different, kind of rigid. And she fall a few times.
Around a year before that ,her habit of eating is kind of changing, prefer more sweet foods.
After took Madopar and Exelon, her walking or other movements features seem to be better and unchanged. Sweet eating habit also gone. I guess it’s because Madopar helps with dopamine which might be the cause of that sweet eating habit and some movements.
But the memory and language problems seem to getting worst. She has problem with episodic memory, naming difficulty , sometimes mirroring. So I tracked back her symptom around 1-3years before, i feel that she got the problems with language before other things. So we try changing doctor and now doctor give me this keyword logopenic PPA.