RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Neurocognitive function in an extended Afrikaner-ancestry family with affective illness
JF Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience
JO JPN
FD Canadian Medical Association
SP 116
OP 120
VO 32
IS 2
A1 Jonathan Savitz
A1 Lize van der Merwe
A1 Mark Solms
A1 Rajkumar Ramesar
YR 2007
UL http://jpn.ca/content/32/2/116.abstract
AB Objective: To characterize the neuropsychological profile of an extended family with unipolar depression (UPD) and other forms of affective illness.Method: We administered a battery of neuropsychological tasks measuring various aspects of executive function and visual and verbal memory to 49 individuals in 1 extended family. Six participants had 1 lifetime episode of major depression (MDE-S), 15 were diagnosed with recurrent major depression (MDE-R), 11 had another DSM-IV diagnosis and 17 subjects were unaffected.Results: After controlling for multiple confounding factors, including mood and medication, the MDE-R sample made significantly more errors than unaffected relatives on the Stroop Task, a measure of cognitive control.Conclusion: There may be at least 1 subtype of UPD characterized by a state-independent deficit in cognitive control.