Deficits in short-term memory in posttraumatic stress disorder



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Am J Psychiatry 1993; 150:1015-1019
Copyright © 1993 by American Psychiatric Association

REGULAR ARTICLES

Deficits in short-term memory in posttraumatic stress disorder

JD Bremner, TM Scott, RC Delaney, SM Southwick, JW Mason, DR Johnson, RB Innis, G McCarthy and DS Charney
Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare the memory function of patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to that of matched comparison subjects. METHOD: Vietnam veterans with combat- related PTSD (N = 26) were compared to physically healthy comparison subjects (N = 15) matched for age, race, sex, years of education, handedness, socioeconomic status, and alcohol abuse. Memory and intelligence were assessed with a battery of neuropsychological tests, including the Russell revision of the Wechsler Memory Scale, the Selective Reminding Test, and subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R). RESULTS: The PTSD patients scored significantly lower than the comparison subjects on the Wechsler Memory Scale logical memory measures for immediate recall (mean = 11.6, SD = 3.3 versus mean = 20.9, SD = 6.6) and delayed recall (mean = 8.0, SD = 3.3 versus mean = 17.8, SD = 6.4). The PTSD patients also scored significantly lower on the total recall, long-term storage, long-term retrieval, and delayed recall measures for the verbal component of the Selective Reminding Test and on the recall, long-term storage, long- term retrieval, and continuous long-term retrieval measures for the visual component of the Selective Reminding Test. There was no significant difference between the PTSD patients and comparison subjects in prorated full-scale IQ as measured by the WAIS-R. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with PTSD may have deficits in short-term memory. Counseling and rehabilitation that address these deficits may be of value for PTSD patients.

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