Abstract
Factors which have been causally related to neuropsychological deficits in acute spinal cord injury (SCI) patients include advanced age, limited educational level, acute traumatic brain injury, alcohol and/or substance abuse. Concomitant depression may impair motivation, prolong reaction time, and produce fatigue during neuropsychological testing, resulting in impaired performance. To test the hypothesis that abnormal neuropsychologic test results may be associated with depression, the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (ZUNG) and a comprehensive, predominantly motor-free neuropsychological test battery were administered to 66 acute SCI patients approximately 8 weeks following injury. Spinal cord injury groups were dichotomized based on their ZUNG scores. Comparison of neuropsychological test scores between SCI groups failed to demonstrate any impairment in neuropsychological performance, within the limits of the test battery administered, suggesting that cognitive performance in this sample of acute SCI patients may not be influenced by the presence of depression.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 77-88 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology |
| Volume | 5 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1990 |
Funding
This study was funded by a Clinical Investigator Development Award (GD) from the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD (NS-01120), Spinal Cord Research Foundation, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Washington, D.C. (PR-529), and the Kenny Michigan Rehabilitation Foundation, Southfield, MI. Previous versions of this manuscript were thoughtfully reviewed by Bruno Giordani, PhD. Secretarial assistance was skillfully provided by Denise D. Dyson, Susan P. Moreau, and Sue Hazel.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health
- Clinical Psychology
