Cognitive Performance in Long-Term Abstinent Alcoholics

Very long-term abstinence resolves most neurocognitive deficits associated with alcoholism, with the exception of deficits in spatial processing (map reading).

Cognitive abilities were examined in middle-aged, (mean age 46.8 years) long-term abstinent (between six months and 13 years) alcoholics (LTAA). Twenty-five LTAA men and 23 LTAA women who were abstinent for an average of 6.7 years were compared to an equal number of gender and age comparable normal controls (NC). The association of neurocognitive variables was analyzed with respect to age, duration of abstinence, alcohol use measures, and family history of problem drinking.

Each group was given a neuropsychological assessment to measure performance in nine areas: abstraction/cognitive flexibility, attention, auditory working memory, immediate memory, delayed memory, psychomotor function, reaction time, spatial processing, and verbal skills.

The LTAA group performed similarly to the NC group, except for deficits in the spatial processing domain. The researchers cautioned that the spatial processing results may be due to other unexamined variables. However, many abstinent alcoholics frequently spatial processing problems.