rCBF was measured in 10 male and 10 female normal righthanders with an average age of 44.2 years. For the measures f1 and IS significant occipital lobe activation was produced bilaterally and for the measure IS significant left hemisphere parietal activation was produced also by a visually presented right-left discrimination cognitive activation task over and above the activation produced by a sensorimotor control task. The amount and pattern of blood flow changes were similar for both sexes. Performance of males on the cognitive task was not significantly better than that of females. However, an inverse relationship was found for males but not females between cognitive task performance and percentage increase in IS for all regions showing significant cognitive activation.

Leli and Filskov (1979) reported cross‐validated classification accuracy that equalled 83% for a discriminant funcation derived on two measures of intellectual deterioation. This investigation made a preliminary assessment of the clinical utility of this function through a clinical‐acturial classification paradigm. Wechsler‐Bellevue Intellience Scale From I protocols from 12 nonpsychotic nonimpaired and 12 cerebrally impaired individuals were used by experienced clinicians and predoctoral interns to identify the presence of intellectual deterioration associated with brain damage through their own clinical experience (Clinical Judgment condition) and, then, in conjunction with the discriminant function (Clinical‐Actuarial condition). The classification accuracy from the discriminant function weights (Actuarial condition) and those from clinicians in the Clinical‐Actuarial condition were statistically comparable and significantly above chance levels. These results indicate that the clinician who is assessing for the presence of intellectual deterioration associated with brain damage should rely heavily upon a valid actuarial index.

SUMMARY Twenty-four members of a family with benign familial chorea underwent testing for evidence of intellectual impairment. Lower verbal intelligence was found in affected individuals compared to unaffected family members, as were deficits in verbal abstract concept formation. These results challenge the notion that benign familial chorea uniformly spares the intellect in all kindreds.

Assessed the clinical utility of four cross‐validated discriminant functions derived on Wechsler‐Bellevue (W‐B) variables (Leli & Filskov, 1981) through a clinical‐actuarial prediction paradigm. These functions were constructed to be acturial indices of the presence, chronicity extent, and lateralization of brain impairment. From W‐B and demographic data gathered on brainimpaired and nonimpaired individuals, 6 students and 6 clinicians were asked to idetify the presence and describe the nature of brain impairment with (Clinical‐Actuarial condition) and without (Clinical Judgment condition) the four functions. Relative to the Clinical Judgment condition, clinical actuarial predictin was significantly better in indentifying and determining the extent of brain impairment. Actuarial classification was significantly more superior in lateralizing deficts than were the other conditions. In both judgment conditions, students and clinicians did not differ significantly in classification accuracy. These results indicate that with actuarial indices, the adult Wechsler scales can be used accurately to identify and lateralize brain impairment.