Alzheimer's not only steals people's memories but also their ability to recognize faces, which widens the gulf between people with this disease and their loved ones. A recent study has demonstrated that, beyond causing memory problems, Alzheimer's disease also impairs visual face perception. This finding may help families better understand their loved one's inevitable difficulties and lead to new avenues to postpone this painful aspect of the disease.
Face perception plays a fundamental role in human communication, which is why humans have evolved into experts at quickly detecting and identifying faces. This faculty is thought to depend on the ability to perceive a face as a whole. Also known as “holistic perception,” this ability is in contrast to the local and detailed analysis required to perceive individual facial features, such as the eyes, nose or mouth. Dr. Joubert's study has demonstrated that the holistic ability to perceive faces is impaired by Alzheimer's disease.
Source & further reading:http://www.nouvelles.umontreal.ca/udem-news/news/20160411-why-do-people-with-alzheimers-stop-recognizing-their-loved-ones.html
Journal article:http://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-alzheimers-disease/jad151027
Corina Marinescu
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