Dementia With Lewy Bodies - History

History

Frederic Lewy (1885–1950) was first to discover the abnormal protein deposits ("Lewy body inclusions") in the early 1900s. Dementia with Lewy bodies only started to be diagnosed in the mid-1990s after the discovery of alpha-synuclein staining first highlighted Lewy bodies in the cortex of post mortem brains of a subset of dementia patients. Because it was only recently discovered, DLB is not a recognized diagnosis in DSM-IV, which was published in 1994. It is, however, briefly mentioned in the DSM-IV-TR (published in 2000) under "Dementia Due to Other General Medical Conditions". In 1996, a consortium of scientists initially proposed and later revised diagnostic guidelines.

Attention was drawn to DLB following the 2008 death of actress Estelle Getty, who had previously been diagnosed with both Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases before her true condition was discovered. Fellow Golden Girls cast members noted, years earlier, Getty had severe trouble remembering her lines during the filming of the show. Another victim of DLB was William Stiles Bennet II, 1934-2009, a grandson and a son of US Congressmen who represented the area that includes Orange County, NY. Known as "Billo" to his friends, the younger Bennet was a successful businessman, and was one of the original developers of the Yoplait yogurt line.