Behavioral disorders in multiple sclerosis, temporal lobe epilepsy, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. An epidemiologic study.

Certain CNS diseases can produce specific behavioral abnormalities. We used a computer search technique to identify all inpatients at Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY, who had received diagnoses of multiple sclerosis (MS), temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) between 1965 and 1978. We found 368 patients with MS, 402 patients with TLE, and 124 patients with ALS. These groups were matched against the Monroe County (New York) Psychiatric Register to determine patterns of behavioral pathology. Prevalence rates for psychiatric contact were not significantly different between MS and TLE (19.3% v 22.9%), but both were higher than the prevalence rate for ALS (4.8%). When behavioral patterns were assessed, patients with MS demonstrated a significantly higher rate of depressed affective disorders (61.97% of register matches) than patients with the other two diseases. Multiple sclerosis may present a neurologic model for mood disturbance.