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January 22, 2026Movement Disorders Clinical Practice0 citations

Capturing Behavioral Symptoms in Huntington's Disease Using the Huntington's Disease‐Behavioral Questionnaire

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SRSiena N RigatusoKBKrisha BaggaSHShelby Hughes

Key Points

  • The research aimed to evaluate how effectively the HD-BQ captures behavioral symptoms in Huntington's Disease.
  • Administered the HD-BQ to 71 HD patients and their companions, and 71 healthy controls.
  • Utilized Mann–Whitney U and Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests to analyze differences in scores.
  • HD patients reported significantly more severe behavioral symptoms than healthy controls (p < 0.001).
  • Companions of HD patients reported more severe symptoms than the patients themselves (Z = -3.7, p < 0.001).
  • Significant discrepancies in cognitive-related symptoms were observed, particularly in areas like indecisiveness and concentration.

Abstract

Abstract Background The Huntington's Disease Behavioral Questionnaire (HD‐BQ) captures behavioral symptoms arising from cognitive, psychiatric, and functional domains. Recognizing the high prevalence of anosognosia in HD, the HD‐BQ incorporates patient‐ and companion‐reported versions. Objective Examine the utility of the HD‐BQ in capturing behavioral symptoms in HD. Methods The HD‐BQ was administered to 71 manifest HD patients and their companions, plus 71 healthy controls (HC). Differences in HD‐BQ scores were examined using Mann–Whitney U and Wilcoxon signed‐ranks tests. Results HD patients reported more severe behavioral symptoms than HC ( p < 0.001). Companions reported more widespread and severe symptoms than patients ( Z = −3.7, p < 0.001). The largest discrepancies were observed for cognitive items—difficulty shifting thoughts or activities ( p < 0.001), concentrating ( p = 0.002), keeping track of commitments ( p = 0.006), judgment ( p = 0.004), and indecisiveness ( p = 0.022). Conclusions The HD‐BQ captures a wide range of behavioral disturbances in HD. Companions consistently reported more frequent and severe symptoms than patients, likely reflecting patients’ anosognosia.

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Cite This Study

Rigatuso et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6971bdad642b1836717e25fchttps://doi.org/10.1002/mdc3.70539
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