Anxiety and verbal memory performance in APOE-4 carriers and noncarriers aged 50 years and above.
AIMS: The current study sought to explore the relationship between state and trait anxiety and delayed verbal memory performance in APOE-4 carriers and noncarriers who were aged 50 years and above.  MATERIALS #ENTITYSTARTX00026; METHODS: The study was a retrospective analysis of 267 participants aged 50 years and above who had completed genetic testing for APOE status, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and a comprehensive neuropsychological battery that included three delayed verbal memory measures (Wechsler Memory Scale - 3rd Edition, Logical Memory and Verbal Pairs subtests and the Buschke Selective Reminding Test).  RESULTS: An inverse relationship was found between state anxiety and delayed verbal memory performance. No difference in level of anxiety was found between APOE-4 carriers versus noncarriers.  CONCLUSION: State anxiety, but not trait anxiety, was found to have an inverse relationship with delayed verbal memory performance. For example, as self-reported state anxiety increased, delayed verbal memory scores decreased. This relationship did not appear to be influenced by the presence or absence of the APOE-4 allele.
University of California, Los Angeles, Semel Institute, 760 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Ashley R
AR
Curiel
Karen J
KJ
Miller
Karen
K
Pollard
Jeanne
J
Kim
Jena
J
Kravitz
Gary W
GW
Small