Measuring Cognition in Bipolar Disorder with Psychosis Using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery

Abstract

Given the substantial overlap in cognitive dysfunction between bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ), we examined the utility of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB)-developed for use in SZ-for the measurement of cognition in patients with BD with psychosis (BDP) and its association with community functioning. The MCCB, Multnomah Community Ability Scale, and measures of clinical symptoms were administered to participants with BDP (n=56), SZ (n=37), and healthy controls (HC) (n=57). Groups were compared on clinical and cognitive measures; linear regressions examined associations between MCCB and community functioning. BDP and SZ groups performed significantly worse than HC on most neurocognitive domains; BDP and HC did not differ on Social Cognition. Patients with BDP performed better than patients with SZ on most cognitive measures, although groups only differed on social cognition, working memory, verbal memory, and the composite after controlling for clinical variables. MCCB was not associated with community functioning. The MCCB is an appropriate measure of neurocognition in BDP but does not appear to capture social cognitive deficits in this population. The addition of appropriate social cognitive measures is recommended.

Examining cognition across the bipolar/schizophrenia diagnostic spectrum

“…24 This bat tery was designed specifically for use in schizophrenia re search but has also been shown to be a valid and reliable cog nitive measure in bipolar disorder. [25][26][27] The MCCB measures 7 domains of cognition using 10 tasks: 7. Social cognition (MayerSaloveyCaruso Emotional Intelli gence Test: Managing Emotions).…”

The effects of cigarette smoking behavior and psychosis history on general and social cognition in bipolar disorder

“…Most studies suggest that deficits are more severe in schizophrenia than in BD, although recent data demonstrate significant cognitive heterogeneity in BD that may explain some of the group‐level differences . Convergent data suggest that patients with BD are characterized by deficits across multiple domains, including attention, processing speed, working memory, verbal fluency, verbal memory, and executive functioning (EF), even during periods of affective remission. In line with more pronounced impairment in schizophrenia, several studies suggest that a history of psychosis in patients with BD may deleteriously influence performance on a number of cognitive tasks .…”

Emotion processing and psychosocial functioning in euthymic bipolar disorder

“…The MSCEIT has been regarded as a useful tool for investigating emotion processing in subjects with schizophrenia , so that one of its branches (managing emotions) has been included in the MCCB to assess the social cognition domain . In spite of the above‐mentioned advantages, only a small number of studies have examined the processing of emotions using the MSCEIT in patients with BD, and most of them only used two subtests, which are part of the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). In a recent meta‐analysis by Samamé et al , a small but significant effect size was noted for MSCEIT managing emotions in this group of patients.…”