The direct relation of their personalities to the syndrome is unclear, though the similarities in character suggest potential avenues for investigation.
The patients are generally highly intelligent, and the personality traits that can be seen frequently in patients diagnosed with Diogenes syndrome are aggressiveness, emotional liability, group dependant, and reality deformed. Ī typical portrayal of the symptoms in the media can be seen in the characterization of the crazy cat lady, Eleanor Abernathy, in The Simpsons. Most individuals who suffer from the syndrome do not get identified until they face this stage of collapse, due to their predilection to refuse help from others. The severe neglect that they bring on themselves usually results in physical collapse or mental breakdown. Although in contrast, there have been some cases where the hoarded objects were arranged in a methodical manner, which may suggest a cause other than brain damage.Īlthough most patients have been observed to come from homes with poor conditions, and many had been faced with poverty for a long period of time, these similarities are not considered as a definite cause to the syndrome. These symptoms suggest damages on the prefrontal areas of the brain, due to its relation to decision making. In most instances, patients were observed to have an abnormal possessiveness and patterns of compilation in a disordered manner. The time span in which the syndrome develops is undefined, though it is most accurately distinguished as a reaction to stress that occurs late in life. It has been shown that the syndrome is caused as a reaction to stress that was experienced by the patient. In addition, the syndrome is characterized by domestic squalor, syllogomania, social alienation, and refusal of help. Characteristics and Causesĭiogenes syndrome is known as a disorder common in elderly people that involve hoarding of rubbish and severe self-neglect. The primary description of this syndrome has only been mentioned recently by geriatricians and psychiatrists. Diogenes syndrome was acknowledged more prominently as a media phenomenon than as medical literature.
Clarke et al in the mid 1970s, and has been commonly used since then. The origin of the syndrome is unknown, although the term “Diogenes” was coined by A. Frontal lobe impairment may play a part in the causation (Orrell et al., 1989). Other possible terms are senile breakdown, Plyushkin's Syndrome (after a character from Gogol's novel Dead Souls ), social breakdown and senile squalor syndrome. Therefore, this eponym is considered to be a misnomer.
Not only did he not hoard, but he actually sought human company by venturing daily to the Agora. The name derives from Diogenes of Sinope, an ancient Greek philosopher, a Cynic and an ultimate minimalist, who allegedly lived in a bathtub. The condition was first recognized in 1966 and designated Diogenes syndrome by Clark et al. Further investigation of the similarities and mechanisms of these symptoms in bvFTD could help in understanding Diogenes syndrome and lead to potential treatment options.ĭiogenes syndrome dementia frontotemporal dementia hoarding self-neglect syllogomania.Diogenes syndrome, also known as senile squalor syndrome, is a disorder characterized by extreme self-neglect, domestic squalor, social withdrawal, apathy, compulsive hoarding of rubbish, and lack of shame. This impulse may be part of the environmental dependency syndrome in frontal disease, with specific involvement of a right frontolimbic-striatal system. These patients, and a review of the literature, suggest a combination of frontal lobe disturbances: loss of insight or self-awareness with a failure to clean up or discard, a general compulsive drive, and an innate impulse to take environmental items. We describe 5 patients with bvFTD who exhibited a decline in self-care accompanied by hoarding behaviors. Diogenes syndrome may be particularly common in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), and the investigation of these patients may help clarify the nature of this syndrome. Diogenes syndrome refers to the combination of extreme self-neglect and excessive collecting with clutter and squalor, which is often present in patients with dementia.
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