Social cognition and theory of mind assessment in non-demented patients with isolated cerebellar degeneration

Aim: To investigate whether the cerebellum could participate in social cognition (SC). Method: General neuropsychological tests, executive tests (EF), social cognition tests, which assess the ability to infer other peoples' mental states, and the Beck Depression Inventory were given to 10 non-demented patients with isolated cerebellar degenerative disease, and to 10 healthy controls matched for sex, age, and years of education. ANOVA and correlation coefficients were employed for the statistical analysis. Results: Patients within the cerebellar group were significantly impaired (p <= 0.05) in EF test [Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WSCT)] and belief questions (BQ) from Theory of Mind (ToM) tests. Performance in control questions (CQ) from ToM tests was similar for both groups. Lower scores in BQ correlated with a lower conceptual ability, the severity of apathy (NPI) and static ataxia. CQ correlated with measures of attention and free recall. Conclusion: The cerebellum may contribute in the control of social behavior through the processing of multimodal data, motor, cognitive and emotional.