title: Visual and auditory event-related potentials in sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relationship between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and cognitive function by means of oddball event-related potentials (ERPs) and to determine the usefulness of this methodology in the cognitive status assessment of physically disabled patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Visual and auditory oddball ERPs were recorded in 16 consecutive sporadic ALS patients. A comprehensive battery of neuropsychological (NP) tests assessed intelligence, executive functions, attention, memory, word fluency, visuo-motor and visual-constructive skills.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All patients performed visual and auditory ERPs and 75% of cases showed abnormal N200 and/or P300 waves. Ten patients (62.5%) carried out the entire psychometric evaluation with significant impairment on tests of executive function and attention. A significant correlation between delayed visual (P<0.04) and auditory (P<0.04) P300 latency and impaired NP tests was found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In agreement with literature data, our findings confirm the hypothesis of cognitive impairment in ALS patients especially on attention and executive functions suggesting a more extensive degeneration beyond the motor areas. ALS causes severe physical disabilities and such a condition may interfere with NP testing. Thus, the P300 seems to be a useful tool for the assessment of cognition and attention when severe physical deficits are present.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Neurology, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Viale San Pietro, 10, Sassari, Italy. kpaulus@hotmail.com
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Paulus
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Magnano
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Piras
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Solinas
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Solinas
authors.forename: G F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Sau
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Aiello
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D018913:Event-Related Potentials, P300; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged