SUBTLE NEUROLOGICAL DEFICITS AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL FINDINGS IN SUBSTANCE-ABUSING HOMELESS AND NONHOMELESS VETERANS

This study evaluated the hypothesis that homeless individuals would di splay higher levels of neurological deficits than non-homeless individ uals, particularly in frontal lobe or executive functions. Eighteen ac utely homeless, 15 chronically homeless, and 20 non-homeless individua ls admitted to nn inpatient psychiatric service received a battery of neurological and psychosocial measures. In comparison to non-homeless subjects with comparable levels of psychopathology, homeless individua ls showed higher levels of hostility, prior criminal activity, and fam ily history of psychiatric illness, but lower levels of depression. A positive relationship between hostility and neurological soft signs wa s observed among chronically homeless subjects. These results suggest that a substantial subset of nonpsychotic homeless veterans suffers fr om ''occult'' neurological deficits.