Abstracts

Rationale: Prospective memory (ProM), or “remembering to remember,” has been an area of interest within other medical populations (e.g., HIV, dementia, diabetes mellitus), but less so among epilepsy researchers. A few studies have demonstrated ProM deficits in presurgical epilepsy patients and individuals diagnosed with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy; however, the research is otherwise limited. As such, this pilot study further examines ProM in adults with epilepsy in order to better understand the possible implications for our patients.Methods: Participants (N = 16; 75% female) completed objective (Memory for Intentions Test - MIST) and subjective (Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire - PRMQ) measures of prospective memory. Participants were grouped into objective memory deficit categories based on the MIST’s normative data (Impaired, Average, or Above Average). Group sizes were equivalent and no differences were found between groups on age or education. Objective and subjective ProM were compared between groups (Kruskall Wallis test), followed by post-hoc analyses (Mann-Whitney U tests). Correlational analyses were performed to examine relationships between subjective memory concerns and objective ProM performance.Results: A significant difference was found on the total MIST ProM score (H(2) = 9.21, p = .010) between the Impaired, Average, and Above Average groups. Post-hoc testing indicated the total MIST ProM score was significantly greater for both the Above Average (Mdn = 45) and Average (Mdn = 39) groups when compared to the Impaired group (Mdn = 30) (U = 25.50, p = .008 and U = 26.50, p = .030, respectively). There was a statistically significant difference on the MIST 15-minute delay trial (H(2) = 7.11, p = .029) between Impaired, Average , and Above Average groups. Post-hoc testing indicated that the MIST 15-minute delay trial was significantly greater for the Above Average (Mdn = 7) than the Impaired group (Mdn = 2) (U = 23.00, p = .032). No significant correlations were found between subjective concerns and objective performance.Conclusions: These findings suggest that a sub-population of individuals with epilepsy (31% in our small sample) experience deficits in ProM. Consistent with the literature on subjective/objective cognitive performance, subjective ProM concerns and objective ProM performance were not significantly correlated, suggesting some inaccuracy in participants’ assessment of their functioning. This pilot data serves to justify an expanded study that will examine potential contributing factors to ProM difficulties in this population, such as seizure- and epilepsy-related variables. We will investigate how additional neuropsychological testing data relates to the participants’ PM performance. This is particularly important given the documented associations between ProM and medication adherence, along with other activities of daily functioning, in other clinical populations (HIV; dementia; severe mental illness, and movement disorders).