CLINICAL UTILITY OF WECHSLER MEMORY SCALE - REVISED AND PREDICTED IQ DISCREPANCIES IN CLOSED-HEAD INJURY

Comparisons between Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) indexes and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) IQ scores have been proposed to identify severity of memory deficits. However, many neuro logic conditions reduce both intellectual and memory functioning, and thus, examining differences between these scores may be of little valu e. Closed head injured subjects who completed the WMS-R were divided i nto either mild injury (MI, n = 41) or moderate/severe (SI, n = 41) in jury groups based on trauma severity indicators and were matched on ag e and level of education. The Oklahoma Premorbid Intelligence Estimati on (OPIE), a regression formula that takes into account demographic va riables as well as IQ performance, was calculated for each subject. Di screpancy scores were calculated between predicted IQ scores and WAIS- R IQ and WMS-R indexes. SI head-injured subjects displayed significant ly larger discrepancies (19 points) between OPIE scores and Delayed Re call Indexes from the WMS-R than the MI subjects (10 points). Signific antly larger percentages of subjects in the SI group displayed signifi cant (>SD) reductions in many of the WMS-R and WAIS-R scores from esti mates than subjects in the MI group. Comparing current memory function ing to estimates of premorbid intellectual ability appears to be a sen sitive indicator of presence and degree of intellectual and memory dys function in head trauma patients. Results also provide evidence that e stimates of premorbid intellectual ability can serve as estimates of p remorbid memory functioning. (C) 1997 National Academy of Neuropsychol ogy. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.