[Relationship between memory complaints and memory performance, mood and sociodemographic variables in young adults]

Neurological consultations due to memory complaints have increased in recent years in both older and younger people. Few investigations have studied the variables related to memory complaints in young adults.

To analyze, in a sample of young adults, the relationship between memory complaints and objective memory performance, depressive and anxiety symptoms, age, sex and level of studies.

The study included 582 healthy workers, without cognitive impairment, aged 22-64 years.

Word List and Family Scenes of Wechsler Memory Scale-III, Memory Failures of Everyday Questionnaire (MFE) and Goldberg Anxiety and Depression Scale.

We did not find any significant association between subjective assessment of memory and objective performance, both immediate and delayed in verbal and visual memory. Depression and anxiety had the highest correlation with MFE. The significant variables in the multiple regression analysis were: depression, with the largest effect size, age, college studies and sex.

In young adults, those which had a greater perception of daily forgetfulness were not those with lesser memory performance. The most important variables involved in memory complaints were depression and anxiety. Younger people, people with college education and men reported less memory complaints.