Neuropsychological Profile as a Predictor for Treatment Outcome

Research has demonstrated significant cognitive and behavioral deficits after chronic cocaine abuse. The cognitive effects have proven to affect mainly memory, attention, and conceptual processing. Depression and some developmental abnormalities have been demonstrated to represent frequent associated conditions in drug-abusers. A group of 20 cocaine abusers from a drug rehabilitation center was selected. A matched normal control group was taken. Subjects received a neuropsychological evaluation, a neuropsychiatric questionnaire, and a personality test. Significant differences between control and experiment groups were observed in tests for memory and executive functions. Cocaine-abuse subjects were observed to present different personality profiles from the control group. Discussion focuses on the predisposition factors for substance abuse.