Neuropsychological functioning and its relationship to antiphospholipid antibodies in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
While it is clear that central nervous system (CNS) lesions in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) adversely affect cognitive functioning, it is also evident that patients without visible lesions (non-CNS SLE) may also exhibit subtle cognitive impairment. The presence of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPLs) has been proposed as a marker of disease severity and hence should be correlated with neuropsychological dysfunction in this population. The current study compared groups of non-CNS lupus patients who were positive (LA+) or negative (LA-) for aPLs on selected measures of neuropsychological functioning. In addition, we attempted to characterize the pattern of cognitive impairment that is associated with LA status in these patients. No coherent neuropsychological pattern emerged, but LA+ patients performed worse than LA- patients on measures assessing attention, concentration, and visual search, as well as spatial learning and memory.
Division of Medical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA. bleritz@ufl.edu
Elizabeth
E
Leritz
Jason
J
Brandt
Melissa
M
Minor
Francis
F
Reis-Jensen
Michelle
M
Petri
D000328:Adult; D017152:Antibodies, Antiphospholipid / Q000097:blood*; D015415:Biomarkers; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
D017152:Antibodies, Antiphospholipid; D015415:Biomarkers