Estrogen and estrogen-progesterone treatments counteract the effect of scopolamine on reinforced T-maze alternation in female rats.

The purpose of the experiments was to determine if steroid hormone treatments would attenuate the effect of the muscarinic receptor blocker scopolamine on a memory task. Ovariectomized rats were trained first to alternate for food reward between the arms of a T maze. Following training, females treated with scopolamine hydrobromide (0.2 mg/kg ip) did not alternate correctly between the arms of the T maze and responded at chance levels. However, when estradiol benzoate (25 micrograms) was administered 72, 48, and 24 hr before testing alone or in combination with progesterone (500 micrograms) administered 4-6 hr before testing, females alternated successfully between the arms of the T maze following scopolamine administration. Results indicate that gonadal steroids can completely counteract the impairment of T maze performance induced by scopolamine in female rats.

A comparison of administration procedures for the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure: flowcharts versus pen switching.

The Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) is commonly used to assess visuospatial skills, visuoconstruction, visual memory, and executive functioning. Two different methods are traditionally used to record the order in which the figure is drawn: the flowchart method and the pen-switching method. Although it has been suggested that pen switching may interfere with performance, to date no research has been conducted to assess whether ROCF performance significantly differs due to administration method. As part of routine neuropsychological evaluation, 100 inpatients and outpatients were randomly assigned to either method. Using the Boston Qualitative Scoring System and the traditional 36-point scoring method, the authors unexpectedly found that the pen-switching group generally performed better than the flowchart group, and productions drawn with pen switching were also significantly faster to score.

Differential impact of executive dysfunction on verbal list learning and story recall.

The California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) and the Logical Memory (LM) subtest from the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) are generally thought to be interchangeable measures of verbal memory. However, little is known about the effects of executive dysfunction on these tasks. The present study involved 96 patients referred for neuropsychological evaluation who were classified as having either significant executive dysfunction (SED) or minimal executive dysfunction (MED) based on the number of impaired executive tasks. Results showed that the SED group performed significantly worse on CVLT total words learned and most of the recall conditions compared to the MED patients (p <.01). However, performance on both immediate and delayed LM did not significantly differentiate the groups. CVLT measures of semantic clustering, perseveration, intrusions, and false positive errors did not appear to account for the group differences. The current study strongly suggests that the CVLT and the LM subtest are differentially associated with executive dysfunction, and argues for the inclusion of both types of tasks in a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation.

Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure performance in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a validation study of the Boston Qualitative Scoring System.

Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF) productions from 18 adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) were compared to 18 matched controls using the Boston Qualitative Scoring System (BQSS). ADHD adults showed impairment in measures of configural accuracy, planning, and neatness. A logistic regression model resulted in 75% sensitivity and 81% specificity in discriminating ADHD from control subjects. In contrast, there was no significant difference on the traditional ROCF 36-point score, and the sensitivity and specificity for the 36-point score were lower (68% and 71%, respectively). These findings suggest persisting executive dysfunction in adults with ADHD that can be detected in ROCF productions. Thus, the BQSS may be a useful tool contributing to the neuropsychological evaluation of adults with ADHD.