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Verbal fluency component analysis in adults with HIV/AIDS
Colleen P Millikin1, Lisa L Trépanier, Sean B Rourke
1Department of Clinical Health Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology
|March 4, 2005
Summary
Advanced HIV infection, particularly AIDS, impairs verbal switching abilities in adults. Highly-active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) may mitigate these cognitive deficits in switching.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Infectious Diseases
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Verbal fluency tests assess cognitive functions like switching and clustering.
- HIV infection, especially advanced stages, can affect cognitive abilities.
- Frontal-striatal systems are implicated in verbal switching deficits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of HIV disease severity, depressed mood, and HAART on verbal fluency components.
- To determine if advanced HIV infection differentially impairs switching compared to clustering.
- To explore the relationship between AIDS diagnosis, depressed mood, and medication status on cognitive performance.
Main Methods:
- Scored verbal fluency protocols (FAS and Animals) for switching and clustering in 217 adults with HIV.
- Compared component scores to published norms.
- Utilized ANOVA to examine the effects of AIDS diagnosis, depressed mood, and HAART on performance.
Main Results:
- FAS switching was impaired in participants with AIDS.
- Depressed mood did not significantly affect switching or clustering.
- Participants with AIDS on HAART demonstrated better FAS switching than those with AIDS not on medication.
Conclusions:
- FAS switching is sensitive to cognitive changes associated with advanced HIV infection.
- AIDS diagnosis is associated with impaired verbal switching.
- HAART may play a role in preserving verbal switching abilities in individuals with advanced HIV.