Learning and memory impairment in PTSD: relationship to depression.

Full Abstract

Memory function was studied in combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), combat veterans without PTSD, and noncombat veterans. The Vocabulary and Digit Span subtests of the WAIS and Logical Memory (LMS) and Verbal Paired Associates (VPAS) subtests of the Wechsler Memory Scale III were administered. Combat veterans with PTSD showed impaired memory on the LMS and VPAS compared to combat veterans without PTSD or noncombat veterans. Veterans with PTSD also showed lower WAIS Vocabulary subtest scores--but not digit span subtest scores--than combat veterans without PTSD or noncombat veterans. Medication status, co-morbid diagnosis, and age all failed to account for these memory differences, but when self-assessed depression--as measured by the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale--or anxiety--as measured by the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Scale--was statistically removed, group differences on these memory measures were no longer significant. However, using a stepwise regression procedure, in which both anxiety and depression were employed to predict the LMS and VPAS scores, only the Zung scale reliably predicated performance. The present results, showing that PTSD is associated with general learning and memory impairments, is an important finding, but the specific effects of depression as a mediator of these deficits should be further studied.

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Author information

Author/s: Burriss, Louisa (L); Ayers, Edwin (E); Ginsberg, Jay (J); Powell, D A (DA);

Affiliation: Shirley L Buchanan Neuroscience Laboratory, Dorn VA Medical Center, Columbia, South Carolina 29209-1639, USA.

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Depression and anxiety (Depress Anxiety), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-; vol 25 (issue 2) : pp 149-57

Dates: Created 2008/03/04; Completed 2008/06/05;

PMID: 17352380, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adult
Aged
Amnesia - diagnosis; psychology
Anxiety Disorders - diagnosis; psychology
Combat Disorders - diagnosis; psychology
Comorbidity
Depressive Disorder - diagnosis; psychology
Female
Humans
Learning Disorders - diagnosis; psychology

Learning Disorders - diagnosis; psychology
Male
Mental Recall
Middle Aged
Neuropsychological Tests - statistics & numerical data
Paired-Associate Learning
Personality Inventory - statistics & numerical data
Psychometrics
Veterans - psychology
Wechsler Scales - statistics & numerical data

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