Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder and Its Association with Craving: A Cross Sectional Study

Cognitive impairment is common among patients with alcohol use disorder of which relapse is a common feature. This study investigates the prevalence of cognitive impairment in patients with alcohol use disorder and also explores the relationship between cognitive impairment and craving.

In this cross-sectional study, we assessed 30 male patients with alcohol use disorder in an inpatient deaddiction unit between June to August 2023. The patients were between 29 and 60 years of age. The patients included for the study did not have any active alcohol withdrawal symptoms, medical or other psychiatric disorders affecting cognition or intellectual disability. Their cognitive functions were tested using Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB). Craving for alcohol was assessed by Visual Analogue Scale. We used Independent T test and ANOVA to compare means. Pearson correlation test was used to compare quantitative variables.

Global cognitive impairment (MoCA < 26) was seen in 86.7% of participants while 30% had frontal executive dysfunction (FAB < 12). Craving was found to be positively correlated with the amount of alcohol consumed and negatively correlated with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score.

Our findings support the relationship between cognitive impairment and craving in alcohol use disorder. Majority of the patients in the study (86.7%) exhibited global cognitive dysfunction as measured by MoCA test. Furthermore, patients with global cognitive impairment had significantly higher subjective craving scores as measured by VAS.