Phenomenology of Neuropsychological Deficiency in a Selected Population of HIV-Infected Individuals in Russia

Abstract

A selected population of 20 heterosexual HIV-positive subjects (CDC III) were administered neuropsychological tests to assess verbal and visual memory, gnostic and visual-constructive activity, organization of motor acts in the hands, and intellectual operations. HIV-infected subjects differed from the individually matched control group in certain measures of verbal and visual memory (short-term memory), visual-constructive activity, and intellectual operations. The findings of this study indicate that our population of HIV-infected subjects (CDC III) demonstrates cognitive abnormalities and it seems possible to certify the dynamic inadequacy of the right cerebral hemisphere. Further investigation is performed to determine the influence of different factors on the development of cognitive abnormalities and reveal the possible correlations between neuropsychological impairment, stage of HIV infection, and disease progression.