Neurocognitive complaints in HIV-infection and their relationship to depressive symptoms and neuropsychological functioning

We examined the degree to which depressive symptoms, clinical staging of HI V disease, and neuropsychological (NP) functioning were related to neurocog nitive complaints in HIV-infection. One hundred adults with HIV-infection ( 12 asymptomatic, 41 mildly symptomatic, and 47 with AIDS) were administered NP tests of attention and working memory, language, psychomotor speed, ver bal memory, and conceptual problem-solving, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Patient's Assessment of Own Functioning Inventory (Chelune, Heaton & Lehman, 1986), a subjective neurocognitive complaint questionnaire where patients rated their problems with memory, language and communication, sens ory-motor skills, and higher-level cognitive and intellectual functions. Ne urocognitive complaints (regardless of specific type) were correlated signi ficantly with depressive symptoms and with NP measures of attention and wor king memory, psychomotor skills, and learning efficiency. However, multiple regression analyses revealed that depressive symptoms accounted for the ma jority of variance explained in neurocognitive complaints with psychomotor efficiency generally predicting the remaining variance. Neurocognitive comp laints did not differ according to HIV clinical staging.