Evaluating cognitive impairment in depression with the Luria-Nebraska neuropsychological battery: Severity correlates and comparisons with nonpsychiatric controls

doi:10.1016/0165-1781(91)90058-W

Psychiatry Research

Volume 37, Issue 3, June 1991, Pages 219-227

https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-1781(91)90058-W Get rights and content

Abstract

Depressed patients often complain of memory and attentional difficulties, and some research suggests an increased incidence of neuropsychological impairment in depression. Yet, many prior studies contain methodological problems, including the following: (1) inclusion of medicated patients, (2) small sample sizes, and (3) tests with unknown psychometric properties. We administered the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery (LNNB) to 28 unmedicated inpatients who met Research Diagnostic Criteria for major depression. Twenty of the 28 patients were given additional cognitive measures (e.g., Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised, Benton Tests). The depressed patients performed similarly to an age- and education-matched nonpsychiatric reference sample. When data for a subset of the most severely depressed patients were analyzed separately, these patients too were found to perform similarly to matched controls. There were no relationships between Hamilton rating scale measures of depression severity and any cognitive measures among the depressed patients. The results suggest that cognitive functioning in depressed patients does not differ significantly from that in carefully matched controls and is independent of symptom severity.

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In order to determine the contribution of cognitive dysfunction to the presentation, experience, and treatment of MDD, it is imperative to consider: (1) evidence of specific cognitive dysfunctions in MDD; (2) if the profile of cognitive deficit observed in MDD is attributable to a common factor or mechanism; and (3) factors that may contribute to the presence/absence of cognitive dysfunction in depressed adults. Depression-associated deficits have been noted in psychomotor function (i.e. the collective mental processes leading to motor output; see Veiel, 1997 for a review), effortful information processing (see Hartlage et al., 1993 for review), information processing speed (Austin et al., 1999; Beats et al., 1996; Tsourtos et al., 2002), explicit long-term memory (Bazin et al., 1994; Cassens et al., 1990; Denny and Hunt, 1992; Ilsley et al., 1995; MacQueen et al., 2002), short-term memory (Austin et al., 1992; Austin et al., 1999; Beats et al., 1996; Brand et al., 1992; Brown et al., 1994; Elliott et al., 1996; Kessing, 1998; Moritz et al., 2001; Porter et al., 2003; Ravnkilde et al., 2002), and executive function, including: attention (Grossman et al., 1993; Miller et al., 1991; Moritz et al., 2002; Porter et al., 2003; Purcell et al., 1997; Ravnkilde et al., 2002; Trichard et al., 1995); decision-making (Murphy et al., 2001) and planning (Beats et al., 1996; Elliott et al., 1996; Porter et al., 2003). It would, therefore, appear that there is a reliable deficit in cognitive function in adults with MDD.
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Evaluating cognitive impairment in depression with the Luria-Nebraska neuropsychological battery: Severity correlates and comparisons with nonpsychiatric controls

Abstract

Biological Psychiatry

Comprehensive Psychiatry

Biological Psychiatry

Biological Psychiatry

Contributions to Neuropsychological Assessment: A Clinical Manual

Memory deficits in depression: Evidence utilizing the Wechsler Memory Scale

Perceptual Motor Skills

Cognitive functions and the dexamethasone suppression test in depression

American Journal of Psychiatry

The neuropsychology of depressions

Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences

The relationship between severity of depression, cognitive dysfunction, and age in medical inpatients

American Journal of Psychiatry

Effort and cognition in depression

Archives of General Psychiatry

The assessment of aphasia with the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery: A case critique

Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology

A diagnostic interview: The Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia

Archives of General Psychiatry

Dexamethasone suppression in dementia, depression, and normal aging

American Journal of Psychiatry

Analytic techniques in the interpretation of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery

International Journal of Neuropsychology

Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery: Forms I and II

A rating scale for depression

Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry

Psychomotor slowing and subcortical-type dysfunction in depression

Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry

Influence of affective states and psychoactive drugs on verbal learning and memory

American Journal of Psychiatry

A critical review of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery literature: I. Reliability

International Journal of Clinical Neuropsychology