Ogunrin A Olubunmi, Unuigbe Evelyn I, Azubuike Chuks
Department of Medicine, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria.
Med Sci Monit. 2006 Dec;12(12):CR535-539. Epub 2006 Nov 23.
With the increasing prevalence of chronic renal failure among the indigenous African population, coupled with the emphasis on improvement in the quality of life, there is a need for reports on the cognitive functioning and the effect of the disease on the cognitive performance of affected individuals.
MATERIAL/METHODS: Sixty consecutive non-dialyzed Nigerian patients with clinical and biochemical evidence of chronic renal failure and sixty healthy age-, sex- and education level-matched controls (volunteers) were studied using an automated neuro-psychological test battery (FePsy) to assess their memory and perceptuo-motor skills.
The chronic renal failure patients performed worse in both verbal and visual memory than controls (p<0.0001). The patients compared favorably with the controls on concentration ability (p>0.05), but their perceptuo-motor speed was retarded (p<0.001). The levels of creatinine (p<0.01) and urea (p<0.01) and the presence of hypertension (p<0.05), asterixis (p<0.05), exertional dyspnea (p<0.05), and vomiting (p<0.05) affected their memory performance, with creatinine level being the most potent variable (p=0.0015).
The results of this study confirm the presence of cognitive impairments in Nigerians with chronic renal impairment and buttress the importance of its aggressive and prompt management.
