OBJECTIVE: Narcolepsy with cataplexy (NC) affects neurotransmitter systems regulating emotions and cognitive functions. This study aimed to assess executive functions, information sampling, reward processing, and decision making in NC. METHOD: Twenty-one NC patients and 58 healthy participants performed an extensive neuropsychological test battery. RESULTS: NC patients scored as controls in executive function tasks assessing set shifting, reversal learning, working memory, and planning. Group differences appeared in a task measuring information sampling and reward sensitivity. NC patients gathered less information, tolerated a higher level of uncertainty, and were less influenced by reward contingencies than controls. NC patients also showed reduced learning in decision making and had significantly lower scores than controls in the fifth block of the IOWA gambling task. No correlations were found with measures of sleepiness. CONCLUSIONS: NC patients may achieve high performance in several neuropsychological domains, including executive functions. Specific differences between NC patients and controls highlight the importance of the hypocretin system in reward processing and decision making and are in line with previous neuroimaging and neurophysiological studies. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.
OBJECTIVE:Narcolepsy with cataplexy (NC) affects neurotransmitter systems regulating emotions and cognitive functions. This study aimed to assess executive functions, information sampling, reward processing, and decision making in NC. METHOD: Twenty-one NC patients and 58 healthy participants performed an extensive neuropsychological test battery. RESULTS: NC patients scored as controls in executive function tasks assessing set shifting, reversal learning, working memory, and planning. Group differences appeared in a task measuring information sampling and reward sensitivity. NC patients gathered less information, tolerated a higher level of uncertainty, and were less influenced by reward contingencies than controls. NC patients also showed reduced learning in decision making and had significantly lower scores than controls in the fifth block of the IOWA gambling task. No correlations were found with measures of sleepiness. CONCLUSIONS: NC patients may achieve high performance in several neuropsychological domains, including executive functions. Specific differences between NC patients and controls highlight the importance of the hypocretin system in reward processing and decision making and are in line with previous neuroimaging and neurophysiological studies. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.
Authors: Christoph Scherfler; Birgit Frauscher; Michael Schocke; Michael Nocker; Viola Gschliesser; Laura Ehrmann; Markus Niederreiter; Regina Esterhammer; Klaus Seppi; Elisabeth Brandauer; Werner Poewe; Birgit Högl Journal: Sleep Date: 2012-03-01 Impact factor: 5.849
Authors: James Ja Livermore; Clare L Holmes; Jo Cutler; Maruša Levstek; Gyorgy Moga; James Rc Brittain; Daniel Campbell-Meiklejohn Journal: J Psychopharmacol Date: 2021-02-18 Impact factor: 4.153
Authors: Frank M Schmidt; Juergen Kratzsch; Hermann-Josef Gertz; Mandy Tittmann; Ina Jahn; Uta-Carolin Pietsch; Udo X Kaisers; Joachim Thiery; Ulrich Hegerl; Peter Schönknecht Journal: PLoS One Date: 2013-05-07 Impact factor: 3.240