Neuropsychological methods in the differentiation of organic solvent intoxication from certain neurological conditions

Abstract

Neuropsychological impairment and the subjective symptoms of 21 patients with organic solvent intoxication were compared with those of patients with vertebrobasilar insufficiency (n = 16), cerebral trauma (n = 16), and headache (n = 15). The aim was to study the diagnostic efficiency of psychological methods in the neuropsychological assessment of patients with suspected solvent intoxications. Our results suggest that it is possible to differentiate between the four groups at group level; however, because of the variance in each group, no specific rule for individual diagnostics can be given. At group level, a combination of three test variables and three symptom scales yielded the most effective discrimination. Instead of the raw scores, subscores for the individual tests as well as detailed use of the symptom questionnaire were informative when the groups were compared. This approach may also be applicable to individual diagnostics.