Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a neurodegenerative dementia defined by progressive cognitive impairment together with core clinical features such as fluctuating cognition, recurrent visual hallucinations, REM sleep behavior disorder, and parkinsonism.[1] Pathologically, DLB is linked to cortical and subcortical accumulation of misfolded alpha-synuclein, placing it within the broader Lewy body disease spectrum.[1:1][2]
DLB overlaps biologically with Parkinson's disease and clinically with Alzheimer's disease, but it has a characteristic attentional-executive and visuospatial profile, prominent neuropsychiatric features, and marked medication sensitivity in many patients.[1:2][2:1] The disorder is also frequently underdiagnosed, especially outside specialist settings.[2:2]
Dementia With Lewy Bodies. Continuum (Minneap Minn) (2025). ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎
The prevalence and incidence of dementia with Lewy bodies: a systematic review of population and clinical studies. Psychological Medicine (2014). ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎