Cognitive dysfunction among inpatients and outpatients with schizophrenia: relationship to positive and negative symptoms

Abstract Background Cognitive impairment is an established feature of schizophrenia and is a strong predictor of eventual social and functional outcome. Few studies have investigated cognitive impairment in hospital long-stay patients with schizophrenia. This study evaluates and compares cognitive function among a sample of patients with schizophrenia in both inpatient and outpatient departments in order to determine the relationship between cognitive impairment and clinical variables. A cross-sectional comparative study based on a semi-structured interview investigating 100 inpatients with schizophrenia recruited from El-Abassia Mental Health Hospital departments compared to 100 patients with schizophrenia selected from the outpatients’ clinic matched with cases. The assessment tools included SCID-I, the Adult Wechsler Intelligence Scale, the computerized version of Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Results Patients with schizophrenia showed significant deficits on cognitive function with no statistically significant difference between the inpatient and outpatient groups. Executive function was significantly correlated with verbal, non-verbal, and total IQ. Executive function was negatively correlated with the positive and general symptoms of PANSS and not correlated with its negative symptoms. In addition, we did not find any statistically significant relationship between cognitive functions and the duration of illness. Conclusion The study provides evidence that institutionalization is not an influential factor on cognitive impairment patients with schizophrenia. However, the psychopathological aspects of the disorder are one of the crucial factors affecting the cognitive function in schizophrenia.

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The Number Symbol Coding Task: A brief measure of executive function to detect dementia and cognitive impairment

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0242233 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (11) ◽

pp. e0242233 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

James E. Galvin ◽

Magdalena I. Tolea ◽

Claudia Moore ◽

Stephanie Chrisphonte

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Executive Function ◽

Problem Solving ◽

Comprehensive Evaluation ◽

Clinical Care ◽

Executive Dysfunction ◽

Structured Interview ◽

Assessment Tools ◽

Quality Data ◽

Clinical Dementia Rating

Introduction Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) affect over 5.7 million Americans and over 35 million people worldwide. Detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and early ADRD is a challenge to clinicians and researchers. Brief assessment tools frequently emphasize memory impairment, however executive dysfunction may be one of the earliest signs of impairment. To address the need for a brief, easy-to-score, open-access test of executive function for use in clinical practice and research, we created the Number Symbol Coding Task (NSCT). Methods This study analyzed 320 consecutive patient-caregiver dyads who underwent a comprehensive evaluation including the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), patient and caregiver versions of the Quick Dementia Rating System (QDRS), caregiver ratings of behavior and function, and neuropsychological testing, with a subset undergoing volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Estimates of cognitive reserve were calculated using education, combined indices of education and occupation, and verbal IQ. Psychometric properties of the NSCT including data quality, data distribution, floor and ceiling effects, construct and known-groups validity, discriminability, and clinical profiles were determined. Results The patients had a mean age of 75.3±9.2 years (range 38-98y) with a mean education of 15.7±2.8 years (range 6-26y) of education. The patients had a mean CDR-SB of 4.8±4.7 (range 0–18) and a mean MoCA score of 18.6±7.1 (range 1–30). The mean NSCT score was 30.1±13.8 and followed a normal distribution. All healthy controls and MCI cases were able to complete the NSCT. The NSCT showed moderate-to-strong correlations with clinical and neuropsychological measures with the strongest association (all p’s < .001) for measures with executive components (e.g., Judgement and Problem Solving box of the CDR, Decision Making and Problem Solving domain of the QDRS, Trailmaking B, and Cognigram Attention and Executive Composite Scores). Women slightly outperformed men, and individuals with lower educational attainment and lower education-occupation indices had lower NSCT scores. Decreasing NSCT scores corresponded to older age, worse cognitive scores, higher CDR sum of boxes scores, worse caregiver ratings of function and behavior, worse patient and informant QDRS ratings, and smaller hippocampal volumes and hippocampal occupancy scores. The NSCT provided excellent discrimination (AUC: .866; 95% CI: .82-.91) with a cut-off score of 36 providing the best combination of sensitivity (0.880) and specificity (0.759). Combining the NSCT with patient QDRS and caregiver QDRS ratings improved discrimination (AUC: .908; 95% CI: .87-.94). Discussion The NSCT is a brief, 90-second executive task that incorporates attention, planning and set-switching that can be completed by individuals into the moderate-to-severe stages of dementia. The NSCT may be a useful tool for dementia screening, case-ascertainment in epidemiological or community-based ADRD studies, and in busy primary care settings where time is limited. Combining the NSCT with a brief structured interview tool such as the QDRS may provide excellent power to detect cognitive impairment. The NSCT performed well in comparison to standardized scales of a comprehensive cognitive neurology evaluation across a wide array of sociodemographic variables in a brief fashion that could facilitate its use in clinical care and research.

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Associations between small and middle molecules clearance and the change of cognitive function in peritoneal dialysis

Journal of Nephrology ◽

10.1007/s40620-019-00661-8 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (4) ◽

pp. 839-848 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yi Li ◽

Hai-chen Pi ◽

Zhi-Kai Yang ◽

Jie Dong

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Peritoneal Dialysis ◽

Executive Function ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Multivariate Adjustment ◽

Middle Molecules ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Beta 2 ◽

Beta 2 Microglobulin

Abstract Background Uremic toxins have been suspected as potential contributors for cognitive impairment in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. However, associations between the clearance of serum small and middle molecules and the change of cognitive function were not fully explored and then we explored this issue in the present study. Method A total of clinically-stable 222 patients on PD were enrolled and then followed up for 2 years in this single-center prospective cohort study. Small and middle molecules clearances were examined by urea clearance (Kt/V), creatinine clearance (Ccr) and beta-2 microglobulin (B2M) clearance via dialysate and urine at baseline and after 2 years. Global and specific cognitive impairment were measured at baseline and after 2 years. Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS) was assessed for global cognitive function, trail-making tests A and B for executive function and subtests of the battery for the assessment of neuropsychological status for immediate and delayed memory, visuospatial skills and language ability. Results The median of total Kt/V, Ccr and B2M clearance were 1.89, 53.2 l/w/1.73 m2 and 17.5 l/w/1.73 m2, respectively at baseline. The prevalence of global cognitive impairment was 12.3% for 222 patients and 15.4% for the remained 130 patients after 2 years. At baseline, total Kt/V was independently positively associated with delayed memory function. Total and dialysate beta-2 microglobulin clearance was positively associated with 3MS scores and negatively with completion time on trail A after multivariate adjustment. At 2 years, we observed a significant difference in the changing trend of 3MS scores between groups divided by total B2M clearance (P = 0.033), which still maintained to be meaningful after multivariate adjustment (P = 0.024). Patients with total B2M clearance > 19.0 l/w/1.73 m2 got significant improvement on their 3MS scores (P = 0.005). Patients divided by total Kt/V or Ccr were not significantly different in the trends of general and any specific cognitive function during the follow up. Conclusion The higher middle molecules clearance independently correlated to better performance on general cognitive and executive function in PD patients, which also predict an improvement in general cognitive function during the follow up.

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Saffron for mild cognitive impairment and dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials

BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies ◽

10.1186/s12906-020-03102-3 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zahra Ayati ◽

Guoyan Yang ◽

Mohammad Hossein Ayati ◽

Seyed Ahmad Emami ◽

Dennis Chang

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Daily Living ◽

Randomised Clinical Trials ◽

Disease Assessment ◽

Significant Difference

Abstract Background Saffron (stigma of Crocus sativus L.) from Iridaceae family is a well-known traditional herbal medicine that has been used for hundreds of years to treat several diseases such as depressive mood, cancer and cardiovascular disorders. Recently, anti-dementia property of saffron has been indicated. However, the effects of saffron for the management of dementia remain controversial. The aim of the present study is to explore the effectiveness and safety of saffron in treating mild cognitive impairment and dementia. Methods An electronic database search of some major English and Chinese databases was conducted until 31st May 2019 to identify relevant randomised clinical trials (RCT). The primary outcome was cognitive function and the secondary outcomes included daily living function, global clinical assessment, quality of life (QoL), psychiatric assessment and safety. Rev-Man 5.3 software was applied to perform the meta-analyses. Results A total of four RCTs were included in this review. The analysis revealed that saffron significantly improves cognitive function measured by the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog) and Clinical Dementia Rating Scale-Sums of Boxes (CDR-SB), compared to placebo groups. In addition, there was no significant difference between saffron and conventional medicine, as measured by cognitive scales such as ADAS-cog and CDR-SB. Saffron improved daily living function, but the changes were not statistically significant. No serious adverse events were reported in the included studies. Conclusions Saffron may have the potential to improve cognitive function and activities of daily living in patients with Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, due to limited high-quality studies there is insufficient evidence to make any recommendations for clinical use. Further clinical trials on larger sample sizes are warranted to shed more light on its efficacy and safety.

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Abstract 13811: Cognitive and Psychological Outcomes of Patients 6 Months After Cardiac Arrest or Intensive Care Stay

Circulation ◽

10.1161/circ.144.suppl_2.13811 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 144 (Suppl_2) ◽

Author(s):

Matthew R Potter ◽

Marco Mion ◽

Eleni A Nikolopoulou ◽

Neil Magee ◽

Kelly Farrell ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cardiac Arrest ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Length Of Stay ◽

Assessment Tools ◽

Hospital Length Of Stay ◽

Post Discharge ◽

Icu Patients ◽

Icu Stay ◽

Sf 36 ◽

Significant Difference

Background: The neuropsychological and cognitive consequences of an ICU stay can cause a large burden on many patients. In this study, we assessed the outcomes of a group of patients attending a newly set up, multi-disciplinary outpatient clinic focused on assessing neuropsychological and cognitive outcomes following a significant (>72 hours) ICU stay, and compared patients whose ICU was post-OHCA (out of hospital cardiac arrest), and those non-OHCA. Methods: Between 2016 and 2019, 152 patients were assessed within the Care after REsuscitation (CARE) / ICU follow up clinic, 6 months following hospital discharge, using the SF-36, HADS, PTSS-14 and MoCA. The OHCA group were compared to other non-OHCA, ICU patients (>72 hour stay). Results: No significant differences (p<0.05) were found between the groups outcomes, however we found that 6 months post-discharge, the non-OHCA group experience significantly more pain, are older, and required a longer length of stay (p<0.05). However, we found compared to normative data of the SF-36, over half of the OHCA group (on 6 out of the 8 subscales) and the non-OHCA (on 7 out of the 8) were below population norms, especially Role-Physical (66.7% OHCA and 71.6% non-OHCA) and Energy/ fatigue (66.7% OHCA and 61.4% non-OHCA). Anxiety was observed in 33.3% of the OHCA group, and 35.2% of the non-OHCA group had an abnormal total HADS score. PTSD was seen in 12.7% of the OHCA group and 10.2% of the non-OHCA group. Cognitive impairment was observed in 61.9% of OHCA and 59.1% of non-OHCA patients. Age and hospital length of stay had no significant effect on outcomes on our OHCA population, however females had significantly worse health related quality of life (HRQoL) on 6 out of the 8 subscales (p<0.05). Conclusion: Despite the OHCA and non-OHCA groups having no significant difference between their outcomes, there is a great disease burden upon many individuals following ICU stay, with many experiencing poor HRQoL, mood disorders, PTSD and cognitive impairment. The factors contributing to poor outcome following both ICU related illness and cardiac arrest should be further studied. The creation and validation of new assessment tools is imperative to ensure we fully appreciate the extent of the morbidity in this group to improve care for all ICU patients.

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Abstract P268: Greater Cognitive Impairment Among Older Adults With Type 1 Diabetes as Compared to Non-diabetic Controls: Results From the Study of Longevity in Diabetes (SOLID)

Circulation ◽

10.1161/circ.141.suppl_1.p268 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 141 (Suppl_1) ◽

Author(s):

Mary E Lacy ◽

Paola Gilsanz ◽

Chloe Eng ◽

Michal S Beeri ◽

Andrew J Karter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Type 1 Diabetes ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Executive Function ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Episodic Memory ◽

Regression Models ◽

Cognitive Test ◽

Race Ethnicity

Introduction: Studies have shown poorer cognitive function in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D) as compared to non-diabetic peers. However, little is known about cognitive function in older adults with T1D. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that older adults with T1D and type 2 diabetes (T2D) would have greater cognitive impairment than age, sex, race/ethnicity, and education-matched controls without diabetes. Methods: We compared baseline cognitive impairment among older adults (aged ≥60) from the Study of Longevity in Diabetes (SOLID) with T1D (n=771), T2D (=234) and no diabetes (n=253). Cognitive tests assessed three cognitive domains identified via factor analysis (language, executive function, episodic memory). All cognitive test scores were standardized and cognitive impairment was defined as 1.5 SD below the mean. In logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, education, and race/ethnicity, we examined the association between diabetes status (T1D, T2D or no diabetes) and cognition on each cognitive domain and on global cognition (average of scores on the 3 domains). Results: In adjusted regression models, compared to older adults without diabetes, those with T1D were more likely to have impaired cognitive function on the language (OR=2.13, 95% CI: 1.08, 4.17) and executive function domains (OR=2.66, 95% CI: 1.36, 5.22). No significant differences in global cognitive impairment or impairment on the episodic memory domain were observed for T1D and no significant differences on any domain were observed for T2D. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that older adults with T1D have greater cognitive impairment than their peers without diabetes; findings were specific to the language and executive function domains, with episodic memory being unaffected. No increase in cognitive impairment was observed for older adults with T2D. Additional research is needed to understand the causes and potentially modifiable factors associated with impaired cognition among older adults with T1D.

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Effects of Pet Insects on Cognitive Function among the Elderly: An fMRI Study

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm8101705 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (10) ◽

pp. 1705 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ji-Yeon Park ◽

Hae-Jin Ko ◽

A-Sol Kim ◽

Ha-Na Moon ◽

Hye-In Choi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Function ◽

Elderly Women ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Positive Effects ◽

Healthy Elderly ◽

Insect Rearing ◽

Group I ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Group Ii

Animal-assisted therapy has positive effects on cognitive function, depression, performance ability, and social functioning in elderly patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of rearing pet insects on the cognitive function of healthy elderly participants, with fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) being used for this purpose. Community-dwelling right-handed elderly women (≥60 years) with normal cognitive function were enrolled and randomized at a 1:1 ratio into two groups: insect-rearing and control (n = 16) groups, with the insect-rearing group being further classified into two groups for analysis according to the subjects’ scores in the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, WCST) at the baseline fMRI: Insect-rearing group I with a relatively high score (n = 13), and insect-rearing group II with a relatively low score (n = 6). The insect-rearing groups received and reared crickets as pet insects for 8 weeks. The WCST consisted of two variations, a high level baseline (HLB) and semi-WCST version. There was a significant difference accuracy of the HLB–semi-WCST (p < 0.05) in insect-rearing group II after 8 weeks from the baseline test. In the fMRI analysis involving the WCST reaction test, increased activation was observed in the right dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex and parietal cortex in insect-rearing group II when the semi-WCST, rather than the HLB, was performed. Rearing pet insects showed positive effects on executive functions and performance improvement in elderly women. Further larger studies on the effects of pet insects on cognitive function are warranted.

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Prospective Associations of Erythrocyte Composition and Dietary Intake of n-3 and n-6 PUFA with Measures of Cognitive Function

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu10091253 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 1253 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sherman Bigornia ◽

Tammy Scott ◽

William Harris ◽

Katherine Tucker

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Executive Function ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Dietary Intake ◽

Puerto Rican ◽

Cognitive Domain ◽

Health Study ◽

Individual Species ◽

Dietary Pufa ◽

The Impact

Polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) consumption is recommended as part of a healthy diet, but evidence of the impact of individual species and biological concentrations on cognitive function is limited. We examined prospective associations of PUFA erythrocyte composition and dietary intake with measures of cognitive function among participants of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (aged 57 years). Erythrocyte and dietary PUFA composition were ascertained at baseline and associated with 2-year scores on the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) (n = 1032) and cognitive domain patterns derived from a battery of tests (n = 865), as well as with incidence of cognitive impairment. Erythrocyte and dietary n-3 PUFA were not significantly associated with MMSE score. However, total erythrocyte and dietary n-3 very-long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA), and intake of individual species, were associated with better executive function (P-trend < 0.05, for all). There was evidence that greater erythrocyte n-6 eicosadienoic acid concentration was associated with lower MMSE and executive function scores (P-trend = 0.02). Only erythrocyte arachidonic acid (ARA) concentration predicted cognitive impairment (Odds Ratio = 1.26; P = 0.01). Among Puerto Rican adults, we found that n-3 VLCFA consumption may beneficially impact executive function. Further, these findings provide some evidence that n-6 metabolism favoring greater ARA tissue incorporation, but not necessarily dietary intake, could increase the risk of cognitive impairment.

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Differences in Executive Function Among Patients With Schizophrenia, Their Unaffected First-Degree Relatives, and Healthy Participants

The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology ◽

10.1093/ijnp/pyaa052 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 23 (11) ◽

pp. 731-737

Author(s):

Yuzuru Kataoka ◽

Takamitsu Shimada ◽

Yoko Koide ◽

Hiroaki Okubo ◽

Takashi Uehara ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Executive Function ◽

Executive Functions ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Intermediate Phenotype ◽

Clinical Variable ◽

Card Sorting ◽

First Degree Relatives ◽

Duration Of Illness ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Perseverative Errors

Abstract Background Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) display impaired executive functions compared with healthy controls (HCs). Furthermore, unaffected first-degree relatives (FRs) of patients with SCZ independently perform worse executive functions than do HCs. However, few studies have investigated the differences in executive functions assessed among patients with SCZ, FRs, and HCs, and the findings are inconsistent. Methods We investigated diagnostic differences in executive functions, namely (1) numbers of categories achieved (CA), (2) total errors (TE), and (3) percentage of perseverative errors of Nelson types (%PEN), using the Wisconsin card sorting test among patients with SCZ (n = 116), unaffected FRs (n = 62), and HCs (n = 146) at a single institute. Correlations between these executive functions and clinical variables were investigated. Results Significant differences existed in all executive functions among diagnostic groups (CA, F2,319 = 15.5, P = 3.71 × 10–7; TE, F2,319 = 16.2, P = 2.06 × 10–7; and %PEN, F2,319 = 21.3, P = 2.15 × 10–9). Patients with SCZ had fewer CA and more TE and %PEN than those of HCs (CA, Cohen’s d = −0.70, P = 5.49 × 10–8; TE, d = 0.70, P = 5.62 × 10–8; and %PEN, d = 0.82, P = 2.85 × 10−10) and FRs (TE, d = 0.46, P = 3.73 × 10–3 and %PEN, d = 0.38, P = .017). Of the 3 executive functions, CA and %PEN of FRs were intermediately impaired between patients with SCZ and HCs (CA, d = −0.41, P = .011 and %PEN, d = 0.41, P = .012). In contrast, no significant difference in TE existed between FRs and HCs (d = 0.22, P = .18). Although CA and TE were affected by the duration of illness (P < .017), %PEN was not affected by any clinical variable in patients with SCZ (P > .017). Conclusions Executive function, particularly %PEN, could be a useful intermediate phenotype for understanding the genetic mechanisms implicated in SCZ pathophysiology.

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Different aspects of cognitive function in adult patients with moyamoya disease and its clinical subtypes

Stroke and Vascular Neurology ◽

10.1136/svn-2019-000309 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 86-96 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Zhiyong Shi ◽

Yu-Jie Wen ◽

Zheng Huang ◽

Le-Bao Yu ◽

Dong Zhang

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Moyamoya Disease ◽

Performance Test ◽

Pearson Correlation ◽

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test ◽

Adult Patients ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Function Tests ◽

Wide Range

ObjectiveAlthough a few reports suggested that cognitive function impairment could be found in adult patients with moyamoya disease (MMD), there were still many aspects that are unclear. The aim of our study was to assess the cognitive function of adult patients with MMD and its clinical subtypes.Methods49 patients with MMD and 23 healthy controls were asked to take cognitive function tests. Cognitive function tests included IQ, prospective memory (PM), immediate memory (IM), verbal fluency (VF), visual breadth, attention, retrospective memory (RM), Stroop test, Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Trail-Making Test Part A (TMT-A) and Continuous Performance Test (CPT). Independent t-analysis, one-way analysis of variance and Pearson correlation were used to seek for differences between subgroups and the correlation between cognitive variables.ResultsCompared with healthy controls, adult patients with MMD had a comprehensive cognitive impairment, including IQ, PM, VF, attention, RM, Stroop, CPT and TMT-A, with more serious impairment in PM and attention. PM and RM were separated, indicating that they were independent of each other. Pattern of attention was significantly different from healthy controls. Female patients were better than male patients, where significant differences in PM, IM, Stroop and WCST could be found. The haemorrhagic patients exhibited poorer in the dimension of PM and RM than the ischaemic. The headache subtype exhibited poorer than healthy controls. PM, RM, attention and executive function were moderately correlated with each other.ConclusionsAdult patients with MMD had a wide range of cognitive impairment with more serious impairment in memory and attention. Differences in cognitive function existed between the different subtypes of adult MMD.

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Cognitive impairment in a Brazilian sample of patients with bipolar disorder

Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1590/s1516-44462008000300006 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 30 (3) ◽

pp. 209-214 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Júlia J Schneider ◽

Rafael H Candiago ◽

Adriane R Rosa ◽

Keila M Ceresér ◽

Flávio Kapczinski

Keyword(s):

Bipolar Disorder ◽

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Cognitive Function ◽

Cognitive Deficits ◽

Healthy Subjects ◽

Neurocognitive Deficits ◽

Brazilian Sample ◽

Bipolar Mood Disorder ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Sample Method

OBJECTIVE: Persistent neurocognitive deficits have been described in bipolar mood disorder. As far as we are aware, no study have examined whether the cognitive impairment is presented in the same way in a Brazilian sample. METHOD: Cognitive function of 66 patients with bipolar disorder (32 with depressive symptoms and 34 euthymic) and 28 healthy subjects was examined using a complete cognitive battery. RESULTS: Patients with bipolar disorder presented a significantly poorer performance in eight of the 12 subtests when compared to healthy subjects. There was no significant difference between the subgroups of patients. These patients showed impairment in both verbal and non-verbal cognitive function. CONCLUSION: Cognitive impairment was found in both groups of patients with bipolar disorder. The findings described here suggest an overall impairment of cognitive function, independent of mood symptoms. This is in line with data showing that cognitive deficits may be a persistent characteristic of bipolar disorder.

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