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We evaluated neurocognitive function in 149 HIV-seropositive and 82 seronegative women enrolled in the Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS), a large multi-center study of disease progression in women living with HIV/AIDS. We evaluated the prevalence of abnormal neuropsychological (NP) test findings in HIV-seropositive and seronegative women and factors associated with increased risk of abnormal NP test performance. Risk of NP impairment was no higher for HIV positive women receiving antiretroviral therapy at testing than for HIV-negative women (OR = 1.00). However, the risk of abnormal NP performance increased significantly for seropositive women not receiving antiretroviral therapy (OR = 2.43). Further, treatment status was a significant predictor of NP impairment in a multivariate analysis that included viral load (OR = 1.48) and CD4 count (OR = 1.08) which were not significant. The multivariate analyses controlled for substance use, age, education, head injury, ethnicity, estimated IQ, and psychological distress. This study emphasizes the critical association of antiretroviral therapy with the risk of neurocognitive impairment in women living with HIV/AIDS. (JINS, 2002, 8, 781–793.)

Recent findings have linked impairments in social performance among individuals with schizophrenia to deficits in cognition. However, one component of cognition, thought disorder (TD), has received little attention in its association with social functioning. The current investigation examined the cross-sectional and predictive relationships between bizarre-idiosyncratic thought and psychosocial functioning throughout the early course of schizophrenia and compared these relationships to those observed among individuals with affective disorders (i.e., bipolar disorder, manic type, and major depression without psychotic features). Participants were assessed on TD, work, and social functioning using standardized procedures across three follow-ups over an 8-year period. The cross-sectional relationships between TD and impairment in work performance were generally significant. TD also significantly predicted subsequent work functioning years later. Less support was found for the relationship between TD and social functioning. Finally, the relationship between TD and work performance appeared to be more consistent over time for the subjects with schizophrenia compared to those with affective disorders. The results suggest that techniques which minimize TD may have implications for occupational functioning among persons with chronic psychiatric disorders.