Background In this study, we aimed to outline the neuropsychiatric consequences of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and to understand how neuropsychiatric symptomatology affects distress in caregivers. Methods The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) including the distress index (NPI‐Distress) was used. Additional information about the caregiver burden was obtained using Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI). NPI, NPI‐Distress, and ZBI data from 17 patients with a clinical diagnosis of PPA were compared with 10 stroke aphasia patients. Neuropsychiatric symptomatology was investigated based on three clusters; Mood, Frontal/Comportmental, and Psychotic/Disruptive. Additionally, the Activities of Daily Living Questionnaire (ADLQ) was used to outline the functional impairment. Twelve healthy controls were included to compare the neurocognitive test scores with PPA and stroke aphasia groups. Results A greater number of neuropsychiatric symptoms were observed in the PPA group compared to the stroke aphasia group. The number of symptoms in Mood, and Frontal/Comportmental clusters were greater than the number of symptoms in Psychotic/Disruptive clusters in the PPA group, whereas no significant relationship between the number of symptoms and symptom clusters was found in the stroke aphasia group. In the PPA group, a strong correlation was found between the NPI‐Frequency × Severity scores and the NPI‐Distress scores. Moreover, the NPI‐Distress scores in the PPA group strongly correlated with the ZBI scores. Scores for anxiety, irritability/lability, and apathy had a stronger correlation with the NPI‐Distress scores compared to the other NPI symptoms. The Communication subscale was the most impaired domain in the PPA group. Travel, and Employment and Recreation subscales showed greater functional impairment in the stroke aphasia group compared to the PPA group. Conclusions Neuropsychiatric symptoms in PPA in our study were more frequent than previously reported. Furthermore, the distress index of the NPI was not only correlated with the severity of the neuropsychiatric symptoms but also reflected the overall burden on the caregivers in the PPA group.

Background: Although language impairment is the most salient feature of cognitive impairment in both primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and stroke aphasia (SA), memory can also be impaired in both patient populations.Objective: To identify distinctive features of verbal and nonverbal memory processing in individuals with PPA and those with SA.Method: We gave individuals with PPA (n = 14), those with SA (n = 8), and healthy controls (HC; n = 13) a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery and the Turkish version of the Three Words Three Shapes Test (3W3S-Turkish). The 3W3S-Turkish Test includes five subtests: Copy, Incidental Recall, Acquisition, Delayed Recall, and Recognition. High-resolution brain scans were performed in a subset of individuals with PPA and those with SA. Lesion distribution was limited to the dorsal language areas in the SA group, whereas peak atrophy areas in the PPA group extended beyond the language network, including the medial temporal lobe, precuneus, and posterior/medial portions of the cingulate cortex.Results: Both the PPA and SA groups showed impairment in incidental recall, and the PPA group showed additional impairment in delayed recall. Greater impairment for verbal stimuli suggestive of material-specific memory impairment was evident in the PPA group's scores on the Incidental Recall and Delayed Recall subtests. Both aphasia groups retained the acquired information regardless of material type. Conclusion:Although both aphasia groups shared similarities in the involvement of the dorsal prefrontal working memory/ attention network, the PPA group showed greater impairment in delayed recall compared with the SA group.