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Biomedical subjects

C J Golden

Publications and source records attributed to C J Golden.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1981

Structural brain deficits in schizophrenia. Identification by computed tomographic scan density measurements.

Research has suggested the presence of brain damage as a cause or concomitant of chronic schizophrenia. The most recent research in this area has been the identification of abnormalities in schizophrenia by computed tomographic (CT) scans. A study was done to investigate localized changes in CT scan density numbers in the brains of schizophrenic patients, as opposed to the brains in normal control subjects. Twenty-four normal subjects and 23 schizophrenic patients were tested with CT scans. Density measurements in each area of the brain (left, right, anterior and posterior) were compared to three separate CT scan levels. Of six measurements of anterior left-hemisphere density, it was found that five showed lower density in schizophrenic brains, as compared with normal brains. Of the remaining 18 measurements that evaluated other areas of the brain, only three differentiated between schizophrenic patients and normal subjects. The results support the hypothesis that there are primary structural deficits in some schizophrenic patients, and these deficits are centered in and around the anterior area of the left (dominant) hemisphere. The results also demonstrated further implications.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1981

Effects of long-term neuroleptic use on brain density.

Mean density values of the brain in four quadrants were determined for a sample of 16 chronic schizophrenic patients who had received between 0 and 3,000 grams of lifetime neuroleptics. Significant correlations were found between the measures of density in the posterior quadrants of both hemispheres and total lifetime medication usage. Correlations with anterior density were insignificant. Corrections for age and current severity of the disorder (as measured by the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale) did not alter the significant finding. Possible explanations for the results are discussed as well as their possible implications.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1981

Neuropsychological deficits in early, middle, and late stage Huntington's disease as measured by the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery.

The study compared 5 patients with recently diagnosed Huntington's Disease with 8 patients whose onset was between 36 and 66 months prior to testing, 6 patients whose onset was greater than 72 months previous, and 7 control patients equated for age and education. The results showed evidence of focal damage in the early group on two scales of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery: Memory and Visual. However, the results also suggested a general diffuse process, present in the early group in only very mild form, but more obvious in the middle and late groups. The findings were consistent with the hypothesis that the diffuse symptoms develop in a continuous rather than abrupt manner. The results also suggest that psychological testing may be useful in the early identification of Huntington's disease.

Dominance, Cerebral↗
PubMed1981

Re-examination of the factor structure of the Receptive Language scale of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery.

The Receptive Language scale of the Luria--Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery assesses verbal comprehension skills ranging widely in complexity. Although a relatively complex factor structure was anticipated, a previous factor analysis of the scale revealed only one strong factor, phonemic discrimination. The present study re-examined the factor structure of the Receptive Language items using a substantially larger number of subjects with a larger proportion of brain-damaged subjects than in the earlier study. Seven major factors emerged which varied on a dimension of complexity of comprehension from phonemic discrimination through comprehension of complex grammatical relationships. Reasons for the difference in results obtained in the present study are suggested and theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.

Factor Analysis, Statistical↗
PubMed1981

The assessment of specific neuropsychological skills using scales derived from factor analysis of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological battery.

The major scales of the Luria--Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery have been factor analyzed in a series of recent studies. These factors tend to be organized around one or two basic neuropsychological skills. The present study developed 30 scales of items loading heavily on those factors and determined performance norms on the scales on a group of 81 normal subjects. The Luria--Nebraska Battery was administered to eight groups of subjects with brain-damage localized to the frontal, sensorimotor, parietal-occipital or temporal areas of the right or left hemisphere. The performance of each of these groups on the 30 factor scales is described. The factor scales appear to facilitate assessment of specific skill deficits and appear potentially useful for both diagnosis and rehabilitation.

Brain Damage, Chronic↗
PubMed1981

Neuropsychological correlates of auditory and visual hallucinations.

Investigations of possible mechanisms underlying hallucinations have indicated that abnormal excitation of brain tissue and abnormal regulation of cognitive activity may contribute to hallucinations. The cognitive control deficits in auditory hallucinations are in some ways similar to those in persons with damage to the frontal lobes of the brain. An examination of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery performance of 10 psychiatric patients with auditory hallucinations, 10 patients with visual hallucinations and 20 patients with no hallucinations showed evidence of general cognitive impairment with a left frontal focus in the auditory group and no evidence of neuropsychological impairment in the visual group. Both self-awareness and control of internal speech involve left frontal mediation and the possible contribution of deficiencies in these functions to the appearance of auditory hallucinations is discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

The relationship between neuropsychological deficit and MMPI profile in chronic schizophrenics.

The present study was an attempt to examine the relationship between personality variables and neuropsychological deficits in chronic schizophrenic subjects. The groups were composed of 73 chronic schizophrenic subjects with measureable cortical atrophy on CAT-Scan and 118 chronic schizophrenic subjects without identifiable brain damage. The relationship between neuropsychological deficit and personality variables was tested by means of discriminant analysis. As hypothesized, the brain-damaged group was found to have a stronger relationship between the neuropsychological deficits and the personality variables than the nonbrain-damaged group. Canonical correlation was used to demonstrate the underlying neuropsychological pattern which was found related to the personality profile of the MMPI for the entire sample of chronic schizophrenics. A frontal and anterior temporal lobe neuropsychological profile was found related to a particular personality profile.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Factor analysis of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery: IV. Intelligence and Pathognomonic Scales.

This paper examined the factor structure of the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery Scales Intelligence and Pathognomonic. The subjects for the study were 270 patients, including 90 normal patients, 90 psychiatric patients, and 90 neurological patients. A principal factor analysis with communalities on the diagonal and iterated to the most ideal solution was used, followed by rotation to the simplest factor structure. The analysis yielded 4 subfactors for each of the two Luria scales. On the Intelligence scale, factors were general verbal intelligence, arithmetic, a frontal verbal factor, and a right frontal sequencing factor. Analysis of the Pathognomonic scale yielded a simple perceptual/expressive factor, a construction speed factor, a basic visual/spatial factor, and a higher cognitive factor. These results were generally in accord with Luria's theories.

Adult↗