Not recognizing your face and that of your loved ones is a symptom called “prosopagnosia” in neurology. Actor Brad Pitt would be affected. Definition, causes, treatments, link with Alzheimer’s… Discovery with Pr Laurent Cohen, neurologist.
Not recognizing your own face and that of your loved ones is a symptom called prosopagnosia. It is related to a lesion or abnormality in the brain. American actor brad pitt would be reached: “He has trouble remembering new people, recognizing their faces, and he fears that it gives a certain impression of him: that he is distant, unapproachable, egocentric” explains a journalist from the magazine QG who met him. What’s this ? What are the causes of prosopagnosia? How to diagnose and treat it? What is the link with Alzheimer’s disease?
Definition: what is prosopagnosia, a disease?
Prosopagnosia is not a disease but a symptom related to pathology. “It translates to the selective inability to recognize facesto identify someone’s identity based on their face“says Professor Laurent Cohen, neurologist. There are two categories of prosopagnosia:
- The acquired prosopagnosia : the patient is affected during his life after a stroke, due to a tumor or an advanced degenerative disease.
- The developmental prosopagnosia : the person has always been affected.
People with prosopagnosia do not recognize their own face
What are the symptoms of prosopagnosia?
The fact of not recognizing faces is the symptom in itself. “The patient does not recognize the faces of his relatives, those around him, the people he meets. And he doesn’t recognize his own face either” emphasizes the neurologist who recalls that “in the brain, a system is dedicated specifically to the recognition of faces”.
What are the causes of prosopagnosia?
Each of the categories of prosopagnosia depends on its causes:
► The acquired prosopagnosia : The brain is damaged at a specific part of the right temporal lobe. The lesion damages this area which deteriorates the function of the brain dedicated to face recognition. It can occur as a result of a stroke, tumour, degenerative disease, etc.
► The developmental prosopagnosia : Like all abnormalities of cognitive development, it is a regional anomaly of brain development. “We can assume that it is the right region of the temporal lobe that is not developing but it is difficult to know for sure“underlines our interlocutor.
In the case of acquired prosopagnosia, usually the patient will consult to understand what is happening to him since he realizes that he does not recognize his face and those of his relatives. “While people who have developmental prosopagnosia don’t always know they have a problem. A boy with prosopagnosia found out because he went to see a western at the cinema with his father and asked him why thieves put scarves over their faces when they robbed a bank. He did not understand that we can recognize people only by their face” continues the neurologist. For the diagnosis, we can show faces to the patient and if he does not recognize them, he is suffering from prosopagnosia.
“You cannot ‘repair’ the affected area of the brain”
How to treat prosopagnosia?
First, you have to treat the cause : avoid the risk of recurrence of the vascular accident, treat the tumor etc. “Regarding prosopagnosia itself, it cannot be cured medically. You can’t “repair” the affected area of the brain. To make the patient’s life easier, he can be encouraged to find tricks, develop alternatives to compensate this loss: be attentive to the gait, the voice or the hairstyle of the individuals for example” recommends Professor Laurent Cohen.
What is the link with Alzheimer’s disease?
Prosopagnosia can be a symptom of Alzheimer’s disease.
Thanks to Pr Laurent Cohen, neurologist Department of Neurology – Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital – AP-HP.