A Study of Delusions in a Large Cohort of Alzheimer's Disease Patients.

The authors analyzed data on delusions and associated neuropsychiatric symptoms in 1,229 consecutive patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) at nine university-based State of California Alzheimer's Disease Diagnostic and Treatment Centers. Thirty-four percent of these patients had delusions. The delusional patients were older, more likely to be female, and had a later onset of AD than the nondelusional group. Compared to the nondelusional patients, the delusional patients also had more severe global cognitive impairment, along with a higher prevalence of hallucinations, agitation, depression, and gait disturbance, as well as family and marital difficulties and self-care problems.