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Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) has a negative effect on employment status.

Para poder cuantificar e investigar científicamente las quejas mnésicas de los pacientes, se hace necesario contar con un instrumento adaptado y que presente análisis psicométricos adecuados. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue estudiar propiedades psicométricas de una versión argentina del Cuestionario de Memoria Prospectiva y Retrospectiva. Para ello se administró el Cuestionario de Memoria Prospectiva y Retrospectiva de forma individual a 192 participantes sanos con más de 27 puntos en el Mini Mental State Examination. La media de edad fue de 39.67 años (DE = 12.3). La media de escolaridad fue de 14.5 años (DE = 2.72). A un subgrupo de participantes (n = 45) denominado Subgrupo A, también se les administraron pruebas de memoria prospectiva y retrospectiva. El Índice Global del Cuestionario presentó una distribución normal. Según el análisis factorial exploratorio se estableció la extracción de un factor que explicó el 35.19 % de la varianza. El coeficiente α de Cronbach fue de .87. La confiabilidad estimada por el método de la división por mitades fue de .73 y de .84 luego de la corrección con la fórmula de Spearman-Brown. No hubo correlación significativa entre las respuestas del cuestionario y los test de memoria retro y prospectiva en el subgrupo A. Estos resultados permiten concluir que el Cuestionario de Memoria Prospectiva y Retrospectiva presenta adecuados índices de confiabilidad y una estructura de un solo factor. Si bien no se asocia con el rendimiento objetivo en pruebas de memoria, muestra ser apropiado para el registro de las quejas subjetivas de los pacientes en la región de estudio.

Employment is a very important aspect of a person’s life, and that is why any health-related factor that can interfere in such activity must be identified. The reality of a Latin American country is different and should be approached as a separate object of study. Many factors that contribute to a patient losing the job can be iden­tified in time in order to be reversed or com­pensated. Thus, identifying the vulnerability pro­file of the patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who are at risk of losing their jobs is an impor­tant task for researchers. Physical disability and disease course are both strong predictors of work status in MS patients, however, cognition and af­fective variables do not have the same degree of evidence. This study raises the aim of investi­gating the relationship between employment sta­tus and cognitive performance in MS. With this knowledge, it would be possible to design a neuropsychological rehabilitation plan for pa­tients, which focuses on compensating and re­covering from cognitive impairment, as well as on serving as orientation for the person who is at risk of losing their job. A group difference design was used. The sample units were selected through a non-pro­bability accidental sampling. We collected the data of 61 patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) who had attended consultation between April 2014 and April 2015, in a public hospital. 29.5% were unemployed; 54.1% were emplo­yed; and 10.4% were students or housewives. The Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsycho­logy Tests adapted for Argentine population; Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Expan­ded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), were admi­nistered individually in two sessions, one with a neurologist and one with the neuropsychologist in a private consulting room. Age and years of instruction differences bet­ween patients with and without employment were not significant. There were 60.8% of pa­tients with cognitive impairment. Among them, 38.7% were unemployed. The relationship bet­ween cognitive deterioration and work status was not significant, c2 = .404, df = 1, p = .371. When comparing the groups in the cognitive battery, a meaningful difference in cognitive performance was observed between the subjects who had a job with those who were unemployed in SDMT (t = -2.421, df = 49, p = .019); perfor­mance being higher among the former. No other cognitive score showed significant results. Unemployed patients had higher EDSS and de­pression, than those with jobs. The cognitive tests administered, together with the BDI-II and EDSS, were included in the binary logistic re­gression analysis. The second model retained the SDMT and the BDI-II; both tests were able to correctly classify almost 80% of the cases. Also, both SDMT (B = .080, p = .014) and BDI- II (B = -.098, p = .022) shown significant effects on work status. This study is one of the first attempts in Ar­gentina to analyze the possible determinants of unemployment, which is extremely important in the context of a lack of determining literature about the issue in Latin America. According to results, patients with RRMS who are unemplo­yed have worse performance in speed of infor­mation processing, more depression and physi­cal disability than those who retain their jobs. Results are in line with previous studies, al­though in the present research a cognitive va­riable showed a greater negative influence on employment status over motor difficulties or physical disability. Clinicians would be able to identify patients whose profile shows a higher tendency towards work life decline, so that they can receive early treatment and delay that pro­gression. It is suggested the realization of a mul­ticentric Latin American study, blind to the pa­tients labor status, with the aim of broadening the results by improving the study methodology.

The aim of the present research was to investigate cognitive pattern of patients with neuromyelitis optica (NMO) and to compare it with multiple sclerosis (MS) patients' performance. Methods: Fourteen NMO, 14 relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), and 14 healthy control patients participated in the investigation. Neuropsychological functions were evaluated with the Brief Repeatable Neuropsychological Battery for MS; Symbol Digit Modalities Test; Digit Span; and Semantic Fluency. Results: Fifty-seven percent of NMO patients and 42.85% of the MS ones had abnormal performance in at least two cognitive tests. The NMO Group showed abnormal performance in verbal fluency, verbal and visual memories, with greater attention deficits. NMO patients outperformed healthy control in the paced auditory serial addition test (PASAT). However, no difference was found between NMO and RRMS patients. Conclusions: The NMO Group showed more dysfunction in attention and verbal fluencies than in verbal and visual memories. When compared with the MS patients, a similar dysfunction pattern was found. O objetivo da presente pesquisa foi investigar o padrão cognitivo de pacientes com neuromielite óptica (NMO) e compará-lo com o desempenho de pacientes com esclerose múltipla (EM). Métodos: Quatorze pacientes com NMO, 14 com esclerose múltipla recorrente remitente (EMRR) e 14 participantes do Controle saudáveis participaram da presente investigação. As funções neuropsicológicas foram avaliadas com a Bateria Breve de Testes Neuropsicológicos de Rao, Teste Símbolo Digit e a Fluência Semântica. Resultados: Cinquenta e sete por cento dos pacientes com NMO e 42,85% daqueles com EM apresentaram desempenho anormal em pelo menos dois testes cognitivos. O Grupo NMO apresentarou desempenho anormal na fluência verbal e nas memórias visual e verbal, com maiores déficits de atenção. Pacientes com NMO superaram os controles saudáveis em PASAT. No entanto, não foi encontrada diferença entre os pacientes com NMO e aqueles com EMRR. Conclusões: O Grupo NMO mostrou mais disfunção nas fluências de atenção e verbais do que nas memórias verbal e visual. Quando comparados com os pacientes com EM, um padrão de disfunção semelhante foi encontrado.