APOE genotype and verbal memory recovery during and after emergence from post-traumatic amnesia.
OBJECTIVE
To determine if APOE genotype is linked to memory function after moderate-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).


METHODS
Eighty-two patients in post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) and 107 patients who had emerged from PTA were selected from 239 consecutive patients admitted to the facility. Verbal memory assessments, including the Spanish version of the California Verbal Learning Test and the Working-Memory Index of the WAIS-III, were conducted immediately after PTA resolution or during the first week after admission for patients who were out of PTA. Both groups were reassessed 6 months after inclusion in a multidisciplinary rehabilitation programme.


RESULTS
Patients with the APOE-epsilon 4 allele (n = 17 in the PTA group and n = 9 in the out of PTA group) entered rehabilitation at a more impaired level, but made remarkable progress during follow-up. Fifty-five patients from the initial sample emerged from PTA during the follow-up period. Age, GOAT at admission and chronicity, but not APOE genotype or initial trauma severity, were significant predictors of emergence from PTA.


CONCLUSIONS
APOE genotype seems to be associated with the trajectory of cognitive recovery after TBI, but does not play a determinant role in the efficacy of memory rehabilitation in this population.
Noé
E
E
Servicio de Daño Cerebral de los Hospitales NISA, Fundación Instituto Valenciano de Neurorrehabilitación (FIVAN), Hospital Valencia al Mar, Valencia, Spain. enoe@comv.es
Ferri
J
J
Colomer
C
C
Moliner
B
B
Chirivella
J
J
D000328:Adult; D000483:Alleles; D000647:Amnesia / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D003072:Cognition Disorders; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
D001057:Apolipoproteins E