Did Robin Williams Have Dementia?

The recent release of the autopsy and coroner reports for actor Robin Williams have raised questions about his state of health at the time of his suicide earlier this year. The Lewy Body Dementia Association (LBDA) has provided information about what can and cannot be concluded from these reports. The autopsy indicated the presence of ‘diffuse Lewy body dementia’ in the brain of Williams. More commonly referred to as ‘diffuse Lewy body disease,’ the term reflects the biological disease process in the brain. “The use of the term dementia in the neuropathology report should not be inferred to mean that dementia was observed during life,” explained a member of the LBDA Scientific Advisory Council. Lewy bodies are misfolded protein deposits found in the brains of individuals with several different disorders including Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). In early Parkinson’s disease, Lewy bodies are generally limited in distribution, but with DLB, the Lewy bodies are spread widely throughout the brain, as was the case with Robin Williams. The autopsy and coroner’s report further states that Williams was given a clinical diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease and treated for motor symptoms. The report also confirms he experienced depression, anxiety and paranoia, which may occur in either Parkinson’s disease or dementia with Lewy bodies. Collectively, Lewy body dementias are the second most common form of dementia, affecting an estimated 1.4 million Americans. DLB and Parkinson’s disease share many symptoms, but have different patterns of onset, progression and symptom severity. “In particular, we need to learn how dementia with Lewy bodies differs clinically from Parkinson’s disease when they both share the same underlying disease process,” noted a member of the LBDA Scientific Advisory Council. To read more about this, click here.