Neurocognitive performance among alcohol dependent men with and without physical violence toward their partners: a preliminary report.
OBJECTIVE
There are high rates of co-occurring alcohol dependence and intimate partner violence (IPV) among men seeking substance abuse treatment. The authors examined neurocognitive performance among treatment-seeking alcohol dependent men with (IPV+) and without reported physical violence (IPV-).


METHODS
Twenty-five subjects participated in this pilot study. All participants underwent a neurocognitive battery including, Continuous Performance Test (CPT), California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT), Digit Span, Iowa Gambling Test (IGT), Wisconsin Card Sort (WCST), Trail Making Test, Parts A & B, a visuospatial memory (VSWM) task and the Stroop Color Word Test (SCWT).


RESULTS
Alcohol dependent participants with IPV (IPV+; n = 9) had more severe deficits in attention, concentration, cognitive flexibility compared to controls (n = 7). Both the alcohol dependent (IPV-; n = 9) and IPV+ groups had significantly more impairments on tasks of impulsivity than the smoking controls. The IPV- group had significantly more impairments on executive functioning compared to smoking controls, but was not significantly different than the IPV+ group.


CONCLUSIONS
Our preliminary results suggests that IPV+ males have more severe neuropsychological impairments compared to the smoking control group than did the IPV - group. The implications of these findings are discussed.
Easton
Caroline J
CJ
Department of Psychiatry, Division of Substance Abuse, Yale University School of Medicine SATU, New Haven, Connecticut 06511, USA. caroline.easton@yale.edu
Sacco
Kristi A
KA
Neavins
Tara M
TM
Wupperman
Peggilee
P
George
Tony P
TP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology*