Cognitive Impairment of Alcohol-Dependent Patients in the Course of Abstinence and the Relevance of Depressive Comorbidity

Cognitive Impairment of Alcohol-Dependent Patients in the Course of Abstinence and the Relevance of Depressive Comorbidity Abstract: Background: This study investigated the extent to which the cognitive impairment of alcohol-dependent patients improves relative to abstinence and depression. Methods: We examined alcohol-dependent patients with (n = 22) and without depression (n = 58) neuropsychologically and regarding depressivity three times (after withdrawal, 6 weeks later, and 6 months later). Additionally, we examined 33 healthy control subjects. Results: Alcohol-dependent patients showed decreased reasoning compared to healthy control subjects. In the further course, abstinent patients tended to perform better than relapsed patients, and depressivity was associated with weaker performance. Discussion: Alcohol-dependent patients suffer from cognitive deficits, some of which seem to improve in the further course of treatment, especially with abstinence.