title: Impaired cognitive functions in adult-onset primary cranial cervical dystonia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Adult-onset primary dystonia is thought to be a purely motor disorder. Nevertheless, several studies provided evidence that sensory and psychiatric disturbances may contribute to the clinical spectrum of of dystonia, whereas evidence supporting cognitive impairment is still limited.
  
  
  METHODS
  A set of neuropsychological tests was administered to non depressed, non demented patients with cranial-cervical dystonia and healthy control subjects. The test battery included n-Back Task, Wechsler Memory Scale, Trail Making Test version A and B, and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  As compared with healthy control subjects of similar age, sex and socio-economic status, patients with cranial-cervical dystonia showed deficit on working memory functions revealed by n-Back task, impairment of mental control and visual reproduction subtests of Wechsler memory scale, deficit on information processing speed and set-shifting capacity revealed by Trail Making Test A and B.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with cranial-cervical dystonia may have impairment in specific cognitive domains relative to working memory, processing speed, visual motor ability and short term memory. Probably, these deficits are not dependent on the clinical expression of dystonia but might rather reflect the cortical and subcortical changes highlighted by functional and VBM imaging studies in patients with different forms of dystonia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy. Electronic address: raffaella.romano@uniba.it.
authors.forename: Raffaella
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Romano
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bertolino
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gigante
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Martino
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Livrea
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Neuroscience and Sense Organs, Aldo Moro University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Defazio
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D004421:Dystonia / Q000151:congenital; D020821:Dystonic Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D014103:Torticollis / Q000150:complications / Q000151:congenital* / Q000523:psychology
keywords: Cognitive functions; Dystonia; Processing speed; Short term memory; Visual motor ability; Working memory