Clinical characteristics of corticobasal syndrome amongst Chinese in Taiwan

This study reviewed the clinical characteristics of nine patients, the female-to-male ratio being 2 (6/3), with corticobasal syndrome (CBS) from 2001 to 2006. The mean age of onset was 60.33±5.20 years. The most popular symptom was rigidity (100%), followed by bradykinesia (88.89%), apraxia (88.89%) and dystonia (66.67%). The common presentations in neuropsychological assessment included frontal dysfunction (88.89%), disorientation (66.67%), memory impairments (66.67%) and visuospecial defects (66.67%). Single proton emission-computed tomography (CT) showed hypoperfusion at contralateral basal ganglia, thalamic, parietal or temporal region in eight of nine patients. This investigation suggests that functional neuroimages and neuropsychological tests are useful tools for the diagnosis of CBS.