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Event-related potentials as indices of subclinical neurological differences in HIV patients during rapid decision
S E Linnville1, F S Elliott, G E Larson
1Cognitive Performance and Psychophysiology Department, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, California, USA.
Abstract:
The authors examined decision making in HIV patients under slow and rapid information deliveries. Thirteen asymptomatic, HIV-infected (HIV+) subjects with known seroconversion dates and 13 healthy control subjects were instructed to detect the "oddball" target tones among nontarget tones during single-channel (slow) and dual-channel (rapid) deliveries. Event-related potentials (ERPs) from midline scalp sites, reaction time, and "hits" were recorded. Behaviorally, the two groups performed similarly, and during single-channel delivery they produced similar ERPs indexing target detection. However, during dual-channel delivery the HIV+ group showed atypical morphology in the region of the P300 cognitive decision-making component compared with the control group. Auditory ERPs elicited by rapid, dichotic stimulus presentations appeared sensitive to subclinical effects of HIV-related neuropathology in individuals who had been HIV-positive for 3 months to 8 years.