The Institute of
Cognitive and Behavioural Neurology (INECO) & Buenos Aires Memory
Clinic
The Institute of Cognitive and Behavioural Neurology (Instituto
de Neurología Cognitiva- INECO), is a state of the art specialist
centre for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cognitive
and behavioural disorders.
The goal of the institute is to provide specialist medical investigation
of cognitive and behavioural disorders. In order to achieve this
goal it supports a wide range of empirical research in human cognitive
neuroscience and neuropsychiatry. The institute is formed by medical
specialists and researchers publishing important findings on the
International stage. The institute also trains and supports the
education of professionals dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment
of cognitive and behavioural disorders.
The institute employs specialist neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists
and speech pathologists, with many years of experience in this field.
All of these specialists participate in clinical neuroscience research
to improve the diagnosis and treatment of patients with cognitive
and behavioural disorders.
The institute offers diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of
disorders in the following clinics:
- Memory clinic
- Alzheimer ’s disease and related disorders clinic
- Normal ageing clinic
- Adult ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) clinic
- Mood disorder clinic
- Anxiety and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) clinic
- Schizophrenia and related disorders clinic
- Cognitive and behavioural rehabilitation after brain injury clinic.
- The institute also provides orientation, support and training
to family and caregivers.
The most important objectives are to support patients, their families,
caregivers and the community in the education, information, orientation
and access to available services. The ultimate goal is that patients
with cognitive and behavioural disorders achieve maximum independence
with dignity and self determination.
The Director
Dr Facundo Manes (INECO Director) set forth for his training abroad,
with the firm commitment to return to Argentina to develop local
resources to improve clinical and research standards. Dr Manes was
trained in Functional Neuroimaging in the Department of Neuroradiology,
Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School (Boston,
USA). He then completed a fellowship in neuropsychiatry in the Department
of Psychiatry at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC).
At UIHC he was also a neuroanatomy instructor. In search for further
preparation for his project of returning to Argentina, he traveled
to United Kingdom. There he became a consultant in Neurology and
Neuroimaging at the Medical Research Councils Cognition and Brain
Sciences Unit (Cambridge). He also worked as a clinical investigator
in the Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry of the University
of Cambridge. In 2001 he returned to Argentina and succeeded in
his goal of establishing the Department of Cognitive Neurology and
Human Cognitive Neuroscience with a multidisciplinary approach in
FLENI. Dr Manes has more recently created the Institute of Cognitive
Neurology (INECO). He is currently supervising three PhD students
and two postdoctoral students in different projects involving consciousness,
autobiographical and semantic memory, executive functions and frontostriatal
circuits and decision making-social cognition. Since his return
to Argentina he has been publishing extensively. He has also continued
with his research despite limited local resources.
The Institute focuses on the diagnoses and
treatment of the following conditions:
Normal Ageing
Memory Disorders
Mild Cognitive Impairment
Attention Deficit with or without Hyperactivity Disorder in Adults
(ADHD)
Depression
Anxiety Disorder
Panic Disorder
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and related Disorders
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD)
Vascular Cognitive Dementia
Dementia with Lewy Bodies
Secondary Dementia to Alcoholism (Korsakoff syndrome)
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Confusional States
Schizophrenia
Bipolar Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Parkinson’s disease and other abnormal movements
Cognitive, language and behaviour disorders due to:
- Head trauma
- Stroke
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Epilepsy
- Brain tumours
- Brain infections
- Sleep Disorders
- Parkinson’s Disease and Abnormal movements
Specific Programs for Diagnosis and Treatment
Memory Clinic
The Memory Clinic offers a comprehensive evaluation of the causes
and origin of a patients’ memory loss in order to provide
an individual diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and rehabilitation
program.
Normal Ageing Clinic
Due to an increase in life expectancy, it is crucial that we keep
our brain in good shape after turning 50 years of age. To do this
we need to maintain a varied and healthy diet, take regular physical
exercise and have regular cognitive stimulation to preserve mental
agility.
Memory, attention and concentration disorders are frequent and
the consequences on the patients and their families’ life
quality are extremely significant. Cognitive stimulation and training
provide strategies that optimise functioning, through the compensation
and recovery of lost abilities. The mission of this clinic is to
enhance and extend life quality, through (a) investigation, (b)
teaching the community how to deal naturally with the process of
ageing and (c) optimising each person’s resources. The services
comprise: a) training in memory techniques, b) workshops on education
on natural ageing, c) workshops on prevention and optimisation of
resources of the elderly, and d) psychiatric and psychological support
for the elderly.
Cognitive and Language Rehabilitation post Brain
Injury (TBI and Stroke)
Patients post TBI may experience certain difficulties in: attention,
memory, problem-solving and, language. Such difficulties may be
detected by the people who are in contact with the patient but not
by the patient themselves. The main objective of the treatment is
that they become aware of their difficulties and are able to compensate
for them with the help of appropriate strategies, thus enhancing
their life quality. After a stroke, some patients may have cognitive,
behavioural and speech difficulties. It is important to create a
customised communicative space in which the patient can develop
the appropriate resources and abilities.
Attention deficit with and without hyperactivity
disorder in Adults (ADHD) Clinic
ADHD is a disorder that comprises: lack of attention, hyperactivity
and impulsivity. At the Institute a systematic and thorough evaluation
allows for the identification and diagnosis of the deficit as well
as related disorders. After the evaluation, a treatment tailored
to meet the needs of the patient is designed, combining the best
therapeutic resources, oriented to achieve the best results in the
shortest period of time.
Affective Disorders Clinic
If changes in mood or character are not treated adequately, they
cause a great amount of suffering, both emotionally and financially
within the person’s family unit. Illnesses include bipolar
disorders and depression. Our objective is to achieve an early detection
of the illness and to provide a customized treatment.
Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) and
Anxiety Disorder Clinic
Obsessive and anxiety disorders are very frequent. More than 15%
of the population suffers from one or more of these conditions.
They occur at any age and affect people belonging to all social,
cultural and economic backgrounds. Some of the symptoms of anxiety
disorders and OCD are: excessive worry, nervousness, panic, anxiety,
sleep difficulty, different clinical features of clinical phobic
conditions and isolation. In most of the cases, it is very easy
to establish a diagnosis and give an appropriate treatment. Many
patients and families consequently lead a normal life.
Schizophrenia and related disorders Clinic
From a cognitive point of view, the study of schizophrenia has
arrived at a conclusion that the illness presents subtle alterations
in the processing of information. Early detection is fundamental
so as to plan efficient, customised treatment.
Frontal Dysfunction Clinic
A wide range of neurological and psychiatric illnesses produce
decision-making, planning, attention, emotion, control of inhibitions
and work memory deficits. In this clinic, a highly trained, specialised,
multidisciplinary team of professionals evaluate cognitive and behavioral
disorders secondary to frontal dysfunction so as to provide an adequate
pharmacological and non pharmacological treatment.
General Neurology Clinic
The clinic provides diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of
neurological illnesses.
Parkinson’s disease and Movements Disorders
Clinic
The clinic offers diagnosis and treatment to patients who suffer
from Parkinson’s disease and other abnormal movements. The
clinic also undertakes clinical research to develop more effective
therapies.
Cognitive Psychotherapy
Cognitive therapy is used to treat a wide range of problems, such
as (a) ADHD in adults ,b) anxiety and depression problems related
to neurological disorders, c) primary anxiety or mood disorders,
and d) other problems of psychiatric origin that require methodical
psychological support.
Support and Education to Family and Caregivers
Stress and depression generated when taking care of a patient with
cognitive and memory impairment must be considered by healthcare
professionals. The objective is to provide the necessary tools to
deal with the situation.
Vocational Orientation Group
Patients with brain injury may have specific difficulties which
require the help and expertise of specialists so as to achieve work
and academic relocation.
Control of impulsivity Group
The group is devoted to patients with problems in the area of behaviour,
thinking and emotion control. The aim of the group is that patients
achieve the necessary specific skills to handle their problem appropriately.
Problem-solving Group
The group is devoted to patients with mild to moderate deficits
in their executive functions (i.e., planning, impulsivity and decision-making).
The aim of the group is to help the patient learn to cope and handle
their problems.
Occupational Therapy for Persons with Cognitive
Impairment Group
This group facilitate and develop compensation strategies to overcome
difficulties in daily living caused by the patient’s illness.
Professional Staff
Director
Facundo Manes M.D. (CV)
Cognitive Neurology and Neuropsychiatry
Facundo Manes M.D.
Alicia Lischinsky
M.D.
Juan Carlos Marengo
M.D.
General Neurology and Abnormal Movements
Gonzalo Gómez
Arévalo M.D.
Psychiatry
Marcelo Cetkovich
– Bakmas M.D. (Head)
Sergio Strejilevich
M.D.
Jorge Rovner M.D.
Neuropsychiatry and Cognitive Rehabilitation
Psych. Teresa
Torralva
Psych. María
Roca
Cognitive Therapy
Psych. Fernando
Torrente
Speech and Language Rehabilitation
Psych. Macarena
Martínez Cuitiño
Research Teamwork
Tristán
Bekinschtein (Ph.D. student)
Elisa Pazgón
(Postdoctoral fellow)
Diego Shalom
(Postdoctoral fellow)
Julián
Cardozo (Ph.D. student)
Board of Scientific Advisors
Jorge Armony ( McGill University, Canada)
Josef Parvizi (Harvard University, USA)
Diego Golombek (Quilmes University, Argentina)
Sergio Paradiso (University of Iowa, USA)
Adam Zeman (University of Edinburgh, Scotland)
Gustavo Muhrer (UBA, Argentina)
Patricio O'Donnell (New York, USA)
Tomas Mascitti (UBA, Argentina)
Mitul Mehta (Institute of Psychiatry, London )
International Collaborators
John Hodges (Brain and Cognition Unit, Cambridge, UK)
Antoine Bechara (University of Iowa, USA)
Luke Clark (University de Cambridge, UK)
John Duncan (Brain and Cognition Unit, Cambridge,UK)
Jeffrey Max (University of San Diego, USA)
Karalyn Paterson (Brain and Cognition Unit, Cambridge, UK)
Research and Education | Clinical
Research Department (pdf. 62kb)
Research
The aim of the Institute of Cognitive and Behavioural Neurology,
Memory Clinic of Buenos Aires is to support a wide range of programs
of investigation and to be an international centre of reference
in the field of the Human Cognitive Neurosciences and Neuropsychiatry.
Therefore it houses a research lab with a multidisciplinary group
comprising neurologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, neuropsychologists,
speech pathologists, biologists, biostatisticians, philosophers
and physicists. INECO want young people from the “hard”
sciences to carry out their thesis with the possibility of approaching
neurological and psychiatric patients. Although it is common in
America or in Europe it is very innovative in our country. Among
the most important contributions of this group was the identification
of brain areas related to the process of human decision making,
the neural mechanisms of aggression in collaboration with Andy Calder
(UK), the role of the insula in emotional processes, the brain areas
involved in the development of symptoms of the attention deficit
with hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Furthermore, this group was
the first to describe the emotional processing of patients with
minimum consciousness impairment. The Institute has a panel of patients
with a wide range of pathologies (including pathologies of consciousness)
recruited from several hospital and care homes, to study different
aspects of cognition. The INECO research group is currently collaborating
with John Hodges and Karalyn Paterson (Brain and Cognition Unit,
Cambridge, UK), Antoine Bechara (University of Iowa, USA), Luke
Clark (University of Cambridge, UK), John Duncan and Adrian Owen
(Brain and Cognition Unit, Cambridge, UK), and Jeffrey Max (University
of San Diego, USA).
The current lines of investigation are:
- Neuropsychology of Mild Cognitive Impairment
- Early Diagnosis of Frontotemporal Dementia
- Neural Mechanisms involved in autobiographical memory and in
the consolidation of human long term memory
- Executive functions in different neuropsychiatric disorders
- Executive functions in Pathological gamblers
- Role of the prefrontal human cortex in decision making and in
social cognition
- Neural Bases of consciousness
- Cerebellum and cognition
Education
Another objective of the Institute of Cognitive Neurology is the
education of professionals in the area of cognitive and neuropsychiatric
disorders. Therefore the Institute offers lectures, seminars, courses
and workshops seeking to create a forum for active debate about
the latest progress in the cognitive neuroscience and in neuropsychiatry.
Publications (selected)
- Manes F, Graham K, Zeman A, Calcagno M, Hodges J.
Autobiographical Amnesia and Accelerated Forgetting in
Patients with Transient Epileptic Amnesia. J Neurol
Neurosurg Psychiatry . 2005 Oct;
76(10):1387-91.
- Tristan Bekinschtein, Cecilia Tiberti, Jorge Niklison,
Mercedes Tamashiro, Melania Ron, Silvina Carpintiero, Mirta
Villarreal, Cecilia Forcato, Ramon Leiguarda, and Facundo
Manes . Assessing Level of Consciousness and Cognitive
Changes from Vegetative State to Full Recovery.
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation 2005. 15
(3/4), 307-322
- Jeffrey E. Max, Facundo F. Manes ,
Brigitte A.M. Robertson, Katherine Mathews, Peter T. Fox,
Jack Lancaster. Prefrontal and Executive Attention Network
Lesions and the Development of
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Symptomatology.
Journal of the American Academy of Child and
Adolescent Psychiatry . 2005 May;44(5):443-50.
- Tristan A. Bekinschtein, Ramon Leiguarda, Jorge
Armony, Adrian Owen, Silvina Carpintiero, Jorge Niklison,
Lisandro Olmos, Lucas Sigman, and Facundo Manes . Emotion
Processing in the Minimally Conscious State. J
Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2004
May;75(5):788.
- Mitul A. Mehta, Facundo F. Manes , Gianna Magnolfi,
Barbara J. Sahakian and Trevor W. Robbins. Impaired
set-shifting and dissociable effects on tests of spatial
working memory following the dopamine D2 receptor
antagonist sulpiride. Psychopharmacology
(Berl). 2004 Apr 28
- Clark L, Manes F. Social and emotional decision-making
following frontal lobe injury. Neurocase 10 (5);
1-6, 2004.
- Andrew J. Calder, Jill Keane, Andrew D. Lawrence, and
Facundo Manes . Impaired Recognition of Anger Following
Damage to the Ventral Striatum. Brain 2004
Sep; 127 (Pt 9): 1958-69.
- Max JE, Mathews K, Manes FF , Robertson BAM, Fox PT,
Lancaster JL, Lansing AE, Schatz, A, Collings N. Attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder and neurocognitive
correlates after childhood stroke. J Int
Neuropsychol Soc. 9:815-829, 2003
- Luke Clark, Facundo Manes , Barbara J
Sahakian & Trevor W Robbins Decision-making impairment
is associated with the laterality but not the volume of
prefrontal cortex damage. Neuropsychologia
. 2003;41(11):1474-83.
- Max JE, Fox PT, Lancaster JL, Kochunov P, Mathews K,
Manes FF , Robertson BA, Arndt S, Robin DA, Lansing AE.
Putamen lesions and the development of
attention-deficit/hyperactivity symptomatology. J
Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2002
May;41(5):563-71
- Teresa Torralva, Tristán Bekinstein, María
Roca, Agustina Lacroze , Maria Lujan Calcagno, Ramón
Leiguarda, Facundo Manes . An "ecological" battery to
detect specific executive deficits in patients with early
Frontal variant of Frontotemporal Dementia (fvFTD).
J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci 2005 vol
17:2 Spring, 266.
- Teresa Torralva, Alicia Lischinsky , Agustina Lacroze
, Ramón Leiguarda, Facundo Manes . Executive Functions
in ADHD: The usefulness of an "ecological" battery.
J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci 2005 vol
17:2 Spring, 266.
- Teresa Torralva, John Hodges, Tristán
Bekinschtein, Luke Clark, María Roca, Maria Calcagno,
Ramón Leiguarda, Facundo Manes . Theory of Mind and
Decision-Making Deficits in Patients with Prefrontal Cortex
Dysfunction. J Neuropsychiatry Clin
Neurosci 2005 vol 17:2 Spring, 266.
- María Roca, Teresa Torralva, Luke Clark,
María Eugenia Martín, Tristán Beckinstein,
Maria Lujan Calcagno, Ramón Leiguarda, Facundo Manes .
Decision-making in Pathological Gamblers. AAN abstract.
Neurology 2005.
- Agustina Ruiz Villamil, Sebastian F Ameriso, Maria
Roca , Lucia Crivelli, Maria L Calcagno, Alejandra
Amengual, Ramon Leiguarda, Facundo F Manes. An ecological
Battery to Detect Specific Executive Deficits in Patients
with Focal Cerebellar Lesions. AAN abstract.
Neurology 2005.
- Moser DJ, Jorge RE, Manes F , Paradiso S, Benjamin ML,
Robinson RG. Improved executive functioning following
repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.
Neurology 2002 Apr 23;58(8):1288-90
- Calder, A. J., Keane, J., Manes, F. Antoun, N. Young,
A.W. Impaired recognition and experience of disgust
following brain injury , Nature
Neuroscience 3 1077-1078 (2000).
- Manes F , Sahakian B, Clark L, Rogers R, Antoun N,
Aitken M, Robbins T. Decision-making processes following
damage to the prefrontal cortex. Brain
2002 Mar;125(Pt 3):624-639
- Manes F.; Hodges J., Graham K., Zeman A.; Focal
autobiographical amnesia in association with Transient
Epileptic Amnesia. Brain 124. 499-509,
2001.
- Starkstein S.; Manes F. Apathy and Depression
Following Stroke. CNS Spectrums. Volume 5
Number 3. 43-50. March 2000.
- Galton, C J. Manes, F F. Antoun, N. Gomez-Anson, B.
Patterson, K. Scheltens, P. Hodges, J R. Differential
patterns of hippocampal and temporal lobe atrophy in
Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia .
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery &
Psychiatry. 68(2):259, February 2000.
- Manes F .; Paradiso S.; Springer J.; Lamberty G.;
Robinson RG. Neglect Following Right Insular Cortex
Infarction. Stroke 1999
May;30(5):946-8.
- Nogues M.; Leiguarda R.; Rivero A.; Merello M.; Salvat
F.; Manes F. Involuntary Movements and Abnormal Spontaneous
EMG activity in Syringomyelia and Syringobulbia.
Neurology 1999; 52:823-834.
- Kim SH.; Manes F.; Kosier T.; Baruah S.; Robinson RG.
Irritability Following Traumatic Brain Injury. The
Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 1999;
187:327-335.
- Manes F .; Springer J.; Jorge R.;
Robinson RG. Verbal Memory Impairment after Left Insular
Infarction. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and
Psychiatry 1999; 67:532-534.
- Manes F.; Piven J.; Vrancic D.; Nanclares V.; Plebst
C.; Starkstein S. A MRI study of Corpus Callosum, and
Cerebellum in Mentally Retarded Autistic Individuals.
Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical
Neurosciences 1999; 11:470 474.
Community - oriented activities (Open to the
Community, free of charge)
Available only in Spanish
Contact
Make a donation to help the research programs
at the Institute of Cognitive Neurology.
How to contact us:
Castex 3293. CP 1425
Buenos Aires Argentina
Tel.: [54 11] 4807.4748
info@neurologiacognitiva.org
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