A-09 Attention in individuals with Heroin dependence measured by digit span versus continuous performance test

Abstract

Objective Heroin dependent individuals appear to have significant deficits in attention which can be assessed using digit span forward (DSF) or the continuous performance test (CPT). The current meta-analysis examined differences between DSF and CPT results in studies of heroin dependent participants. Data selection Two researchers independently searched nine databases (e.g., PsycINFO, Pubmed, ProceedingsFirst), extracted required data, and calculated effect sizes. Inclusion criteria identified studies that had (a) compared heroin-dependent groups to healthy controls and (b) matched groups on either age, education, or IQ (at least 2 out of 3). Studies were excluded if participants were reported to have Axis I diagnoses (other than heroin dependence) or comorbidities known to impact neuropsychological functioning. Ten articles were coded and analyzed for the current study. Data synthesis When examined together, DSF and CPT evidenced a moderate and statistically significant effect size estimate (g = 0.614, p = .002). Subgroup analysis did not reveal statistically significant differences between the two groups (Q-Between = 0.228, p = 0.633). The effect size for DSF was g = 0.535 (p = 0.001) and for CPT was g = 0.774 (p = 0.104). The heterogeneity of DSF was in the moderate range, I2 = 71.291%, p = 0.002 while the heterogeneity of CPT was in the large range I2 = 97.863%, p = 0.001. Conclusion Heroin dependent individuals appear to demonstrate similarly poor performance on DSF and CPT. Assuming that both tests measure the same construct, both appear to be sensitive to the effect of Heroin on attention.

The Utility of the CPT in the Diagnosis of ADHD in Individuals with Substance Abuse: A Systematic Review

“…Findings, however, were inconsistent. CPT impairment has been associated with chronic use of some substances, such as heroin [47] and cocaine [48], but not with alcohol [49] or nicotine [50, 51]. Differences between studies reflect methodological constraints (e.g., small samples) and variations in participants’ age, severity, type of substance used, the use of extreme group designs (i.e., comparing control participants and problematic or disordered substance users) [52, 53], and different task requirement [54].…”