LEVODOPA, PARKINSONISM, AND RECENT MEMORY

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Groups (3) of 20 subjects [Ss] were tested. The short-term (20 parkinsonian patients on L-dopa for 22 mo. or less) and the long-term (20 parkinsonian patients on L-dopa for 40 mo. or more) patients were chosen from a neurological clinic. Testability was assessed by the neurologist and by WAIS [Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale] Vocabulary performance. The 3rd group consisted of spouses of the patients. All groups were equated with regard to sex, age, education, length of illness, functional status and symptom severity. The instruments used to measure memory consisted of the Guild Memory Test, the Memory Span for Objects, the Knox Cube and the Tactile Memory Test. WAIS Vocabulary scaled score was used as a covariate in an analysis of covariance on each of the 9 memory subtests. Statistically significant differences were obtained among groups on all measures. Orthogonal comparisons resulted in significant differences between parkinsonian patients and nonparkinsonian Ss on all measures. Short-term and long-term L-dopa patients differed significantly on 6 of the 9 measures, notably those testing verbal types of memory. Significant correlations were obtained between functional deficiency and 8 measures; symptom severity correlated with 1 measure. None of the memory measures correlated significantly with level of dosage. All of the initial improvement shown following L-dopa initiation was not sustained permanently; the elevated level of memory functioning was temporally limited.

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: