Which non-motor symptom is commonly observed in Huntington's disease?

• A. Improved memory
• B. Visual loss
• C. Hearing loss
• D. Personality/emotional disturbance

Answer: (D)

Huntington's disease affects frontostriatal circuits, so its non-motor features are mainly psychiatric and behavioral. Among these, personality and emotional disturbances are especially common and often prominent. People may experience irritability, depression, apathy, mood swings, or social withdrawal, sometimes even before or alongside motor symptoms. This pattern reflects the disruption of frontal-subcortical networks governing emotion, motivation, and behavior.

Other options don’t fit as well because visual or hearing loss are not typical early non-motor features of Huntington's, and memory can be affected as part of cognitive decline but is not described as an improvement. The hallmark non-motor presentation centers on personality and emotional changes due to the disease’s impact on these brain circuits.