Abstract
Objective
To determine whether depression plays a role in delayed memory in patients with a history of Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA).
Method
The data from this study was derived from a large de-identified database from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center containing neuropsychological information for transient ischemic attack (TIA) patients (1,585) who completed a Logical Memory-Delay. The sample was divided into two groups: those that related to depression (n = 473; mean age = 84.61; SD = 6.01) as determined by the etiologic diagnosis of the cognitive disorder-Depression and those that did not (n = 769; mean age = 87.47; SD = 6.37).
Results
An Independent-sample-t-test showed a performance difference in performance between those who endorsed depressive symptomatology [F(1,043) = 4.96,p < 0.001], than those who did not report depressive symptoms.
Conclusions
These findings suggest a link between Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), depression and poor performance on delayed memory among older adults. Logical Memory-Delayed assesses long-term narrative memory. Based on research, depressive symptoms endorsed after a TIA can affect cognitive functioning. Specifically, studies have found that a decline in verbal memory can be in part, attributed to late-life depression. This cognitive decline may result from impaired executive functioning during the learning phase of the recall task, which then impacts their delayed recall. Given that cognitive weaknesses and psychological distress can impact considerably a patient after TIA, future studies should focus on understanding their relationship in terms of treatment outcomes. Additionally, since the effects of TIAs are typically short-lasting, future research should examine whether the observed cognitive effects are maintained over time when depression continues to be present.
Chronic Stress, Depressive Symptoms, Anger, Hostility, and Risk of Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis
