Perceived Cognitive Function in Neurosurgical Patients

This study explores perceived cognitive function in preoperative cranial neurosurgical patients and its association with neuropsychological testing (NPT).

A total of 96 patients were referred for NPT by neurosurgical service. Patients completed the Neuro-QoL Item Bank v2.0-Cognitive Function-Short Form (Neuro-QoL) to measure perceived cognitive function, as well as NPT. Linear regression (LR) models were analyzed for demographic variables (ie, age, sex, handedness, educational attainment, employment/academic status, candidacy vs baseline testing, and history of neurological, mental health, and developmental conditions) and NPT outcomes (ie, intellectual estimation, attention/working memory, processing speed, executive functioning, learning/memory, language, visual-spatial, anxiety symptoms, and depression symptoms). Significant predictors from the LR models were then combined into a single model to identify the most robust predictors of perceived cognitive function.

Patients were aged 17 to 79 years (M = 49.64, SD = 18.56) and comprised 45 men and 51 women. The most common referrals for NPT were related to intracranial mass (39%), Chiari malformation type 1 (33%), and deep brain stimulation (20%). Results of the final LR model indicated mental health and developmental history, as well as elevated anxiety symptoms, significantly predicted 50.7% of the variance in perceived cognitive function (F = 30.91, P < .001). Patients referred to determine surgical candidacy reported significantly fewer cognitive complaints ( P < .001) vs those referred for baseline testing by approximately 0.5 SDs.

Perceived cognitive function in neurosurgical patients appears to be strongly predicted by demographic factors, with mental health variables being robust predictors. Perceived cognition is not a proxy for measured cognitive function.