Bruce Willis and frontotemporal dementia

We now know that actor Bruce Willis suffers from FTD, or frontotemporal dementia, a degenerative disorder that strips away things like one's inhibitions before affecting parts of the brain that deal with the vital organs, leading to death. There is no cure. Bruce Willis isn't long for this world, and the remainder of his time is going to be rough and miserable. As FTD strips away the things that make one a civilized human, the patient will begin to act and speak in very inappropriate ways as the brain's executive functions deteriorate. Criminal behavior, like theft or violence, may be possible as the patient acts on impulse. This article quotes Demi Moore, speaking on Willis's behalf. The article also says:

It's the most common and deadly form of dementia to strike those under 60. Some are diagnosed with the speech variant, which sometimes paralyzes those from communicating with others. It also tends to prevent people from recognizing themselves in the mirror. On the behavior side, the disease can make people do and say wildly inappropriate things. It could cause those afflicted to do impulsive things, even those that venture into criminal behavior. The parts of the brain that tell us what is and isn't a good idea are gradually erased. Eventually, the disease breaks down the cognitive functions that keep vital organs working, which leads to death. 

I'm not sure about "the cognitive functions that keep vital organs working." Is that supposed to be a clumsy reference to the autonomic nervous system, which takes care of survival functions like breathing, digestion, heart rate, and the fight-or-flight response without the need for conscious thought (i.e., cognition)?