Cognitive impairment and chronic alcohol abuse: a neuropsychological study

Twenty-eight chronic alcoholic subjects were submitted to our Mental Deterioration Battery. The scores obtained by this group, corrected for age and educational level, were compared with those achieved by a control group. Our data do not confirm a selective impairment of the functions related to the right hemisphere; they show a diffuse cerebral damage and suggest, perhaps, a major impairment of the verbal functions subserved by the left hemisphere. Therefore, according to our data the question of selective hemispheric impairment as opposed to more diffuse cerebral damage in chronic alcoholism still remains open.