Copromanie et coprophagie chez les résidents atteints de maladie d'Alzheimer à un stade sévère : de l'agir au dire

Copromania is the tendency to manipulate and smear excrement on walls and objects, while coprophagia corresponds to behaviors that involve the ingesting of feces. Although copromania is commonplace in children, it is often associated with sphincter incontinence in the elderly. Copromania and coprophagia are thought to be a consequence of states of dementia, but this is not the only aspect: coprophagia has also been described in patients with schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder and Kluver-Bucy syndrome observed in Pick's disease, in the Alzheimer patients, and in adreno-leukodystrophy. Using clinical elements, the authors propose to work on these behaviors on the basis of the hypothesis of an involution (regression) of psychic processes in Alzheimer's disease.