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Semantic dementia. Progressive fluent aphasia with temporal lobe atrophy
John R. Hodges, Karalyn E. Patterson, Susan Oxbury, Elaine Funnell. Brain, 1992
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
We report five patients with a stereotyped clinical syndrome characterized by fluent dysphasia with severe anomia, reduced vocabulary and prominent impairment of single-word comprehension, progressing to a stage of virtually complete dissolution of the semantic components of language. A marked reduction in the ability to generate exemplars from restricted semantic categories (e.g. animals, vehicles, etc.) was a consistent and early feature. Tests of semantic memory demonstrated a radically impoverished knowledge about a range of living and man-made items. In contrast, phonology and grammar of spoken language were largely preserved, as was comprehension of complex syntactic commands. Reading showed a pattern of surface dyslexia. Autobiographical and day-to-day (episodic) memory were relatively retained. Non-verbal memory, perceptual and visuospatial abilities were also strikingly preserved. In some cases, behavioural and personality changes may supervene; one patient developed features of the Kluver-Bucy Syndrome. Radiological investigations have shown marked focal temporal atrophy in all five patients, and functional imaging by single positron emission tomography and positron emission tomography (one case) have implicated the dominant temporal lobe in all five. In the older literature, such cases would have been subsumed under the rubric of Pick's disease. Others have been included in series with progressive aphasia. We propose the term semantic dementia, first coined by Snowden et al. (1989), to designate this clinical syndrome.
Why it matters
Reports five patients with a syndrome of fluent speech with severe word-finding and word-comprehension problems, while grammar and day-to-day memory were relatively preserved, and proposes the term semantic dementia for it. Imaging showed marked temporal lobe atrophy in all five.
How this study scored 53/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on strength of evidence, so that was left out: it earned 50 of the 95 points we could judge it on, which is 53 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Brain) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Brain: journal h-index 503 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | — / 5 | No evidence rating recorded — left out of this score |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1992 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,731 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 48.1 citations a year over 36 year(s) since 1992 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 18.8× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 76 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Elaine Funnell: h-index 22 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of Oxford: institution h-index 2,205 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 1486461) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 50 / 95 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 50 of the 95 points we could judge it on is 53 out of 100. |
| Total | 53 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Hodges, J. R., Patterson, K. E., Oxbury, S., & Funnell, E. (1992). Semantic dementia. Progressive fluent aphasia with temporal lobe atrophy. Brain. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/115.6.1783
Vancouver
Hodges JR, Patterson KE, Oxbury S, Funnell E. Semantic dementia. Progressive fluent aphasia with temporal lobe atrophy. Brain. 1992. doi:10.1093/brain/115.6.1783. PMID: 1486461.
BibTeX
@article{hodges1992-1486461,
author = {Hodges, John R. and Patterson, Karalyn E. and Oxbury, Susan and Funnell, Elaine},
title = {{Semantic dementia. Progressive fluent aphasia with temporal lobe atrophy}},
journal = {Brain},
year = {1992},
doi = {10.1093/brain/115.6.1783},
pmid = {1486461},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/115.6.1783}
}