[Early diagnostic criteria of cognitive dysfunction in patients with first cerebral stroke]

An aim of the article was to study cognitive dysfunction in the acute period of cerebral stroke. Sixty-one patients with first cerebral stroke without a history of stroke, diabetes mellitus, alcoholism, severe somatic pathology, disturbances of consciousness at admission to the hospital (sopor, coma) were studied. Mean age of patients was 60 +/- 5.1 years. Cognitive functions were assessed on the 7th and 21st days of stroke with the MMSE. Also parameters of visual, auditory and kinesthetic memory, volume, shifting rate, concentration of attention (a modified A.R. Luria method) and peculiarities of thinking (a modified method of A.A. Karelin) were studied in detail. The screening study revealed that the cognitive disturbances assessed with the MMSE were often absent on the 7th day (40.98% of patients) and, if observed, were transient and completely regressed to the 21st day (80.33%). At the same time, the detailed study of memory and attention in patients without cognitive disturbances (MMSE scores - 28-30) showed the significant reduction of shifting rate, volume and concentration of attention, impairment of visual and auditory-speech memory as well as thinking both on the 7th and 21st days of treatment. These results demonstrate the necessity of early detection and assessment of cognitive dysfunction in the acute period of stroke and implementation of therapeutic programs for prevention of the development and progression of cognitive disturbances in stroke.