ASSESSMENT OF INTELLECTUAL-FUNCTIONING OF PATIENTS WITH PARKINSONS-DISEASE USING THE SATZ-MOGEL (1962) SHORT-FORM OF THE WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE

The purpose of the present study was to compare the Satz-Mogel (S-M) s hort form of the Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) wi th the full-scale WAIS-R to establish its utility in the assessment of intellectual functioning in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). P D patients and elderly control subjects were administered a neuropsych ological test battery that included the complete WAIS-R or the S-M. Re sults indicated that the S-M was a reliable measure of IQ. The PD subj ects' Verbal, Performance, and Full-Scale IQ scores were inferior to t hat of controls, regardless of test form. Adjustments for depression a nd age did not alter these results. PD patients with more severe disea se scored lower on some visual-spatial measures. Verbal decrements amo ng PD patients may relate to problems in verbal fluency, categorical t hinking, and impaired retrieval of verbal material. PD patients may ex perience patterns of subtle cognitive changes that include deteriorati on of some specific abilities as the disease progresses.