Neuropsychological aspects of reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome

Despite the increasing knowledge in the past years, only minimal attention has been directed to the neuropsychological aspects and the prevalence of cognitive impairment associated with reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS).

To describe the frequency and expand the understanding of cognitive dysfunction in RCVS.

The neuropsychological evaluation was performed using a battery consisting of specific neuropsychological instruments that were administered to patients diagnosed with RCVS. A triage was conducted to exclude other potential causes of cognitive impairment. Performance on the tests was treated as a categorical variable, and a cutoff of -1.5 Z-score was adopted to indicate impaired performance.

Seven patients diagnosed with RCVS were evaluated, all of whom had a bachelor's degree and normal score in the Mini-Mental State Examination. The average time between diagnosis and neuropsychological evaluation was 1.8 years. Among the patients, 85.6% (n=6) exhibited performance below that of the normal population in at least two of the administered tests. Specifically, 71.4% (n=5) showed alterations in tests from the Psychological Battery for Attention Assessment, with impairment observed in concentrated (n=1), divided (n=3), or alternating (n=4) attention. Furthermore, 28.6% (n=2) demonstrated impairments in the Phonological Verbal Fluency Task, another 28.6% (n=2) exhibited difficulties copying elements of the Rey Complex Figure, and 14.3% (n=1) displayed lower performance in the Five-Digit test, all indicating executive dysfunction.

This study provides evidence that cognitive impairment associated with RCVS is more prevalent than previously believed and has not received sufficient attention. Specifically, attention and executive functions are the cognitive domains most significantly impacted by RCVS.