They also point to the possibility that apathy might be amenable to modulation by dopamine, an hypothesis we were able to test in our rare case with bilateral GPi lesions. KD was a 41
year-old-male with ischaemic strokes affecting the internal segment of GPi bilaterally (Fig. 1), with greater involvement on the left. He recovered physically within days of his stroke but demonstrated reduced spontaneous and social activity. A previously exuberant and outgoing learn more type, he became a reticent and reserved individual. He lacked interest in others and reduced spontaneity of action and thought. He remarked that his friends thought he had become boring. He was disinterested in going out to socialize. He struggled or failed to achieve simple but important life goals LBH589 solubility dmso such as returning to work. Indeed, he lost his job but then lacked the impetus even to seek unemployment benefit. After moving apartments, he failed to set up his music system because he “couldn’t be bothered”, despite being an earnest enthusiast previously. He spent most of his day sitting at home, waiting for his flatmates to return and cook food. Clinically,
he was difficult to converse with. Questions were answered with short, closed responses. He did not initiate any lines of discussion, nor ask any questions. Although he was aware of his change in behaviour, he seemed to show little concern about his condition. He scored pathologically (8/12; scores >4 are abnormal) on the initiative and interest
subscales of the Apathy Inventory (Robert et al., 2002). Despite demonstrating pronounced apathy, he did not complain of low mood nor seem objectively depressed. He denied biological symptoms of depression and did not score within the depressed range on several established scoring systems: 10 on Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (Montgomery and Åsberg, 1979), 7 on Beck Depression Inventory (Beck et al., 1988) and 2 on Hamilton rating scale for depression (Hamilton, Aldol condensation 1960). Verbal and performance IQ were within the normal range. Physical neurological examination, conducted independently by three consultant neurologists (authors AL, CT and MH) on four different occasions, consistently revealed normal tone, power and co-ordination in the limbs. There was no breakdown of fine finger movements or bradykinesia, even with distraction. Nor was there any evidence of dystonia or involuntary movement, such as chorea. Postural reflexes were intact and there was no abnormality of gait. Deep tendon reflexes and plantar responses were symmetrically normal. Saccadic, smooth pursuit and vergence eye movements were also unremarkable. Clinical single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) revealed good presynaptic dopamine transporter (DAT) signal in the caudate and putamen, demonstrating integrity of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway, consistent with lack of physical Parkinsonian signs.