Frontiers in Psychology (Jun 2021)

Neuropsychological Tests in Post-operative Cognitive Dysfunction: Methods and Applications

  • Jun Liu,
  • Kequn Huang,
  • Binbin Zhu,
  • Bin Zhou,
  • Ahmad Khaled Ahmad Harb,
  • Lin Liu,
  • Xiang Wu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.684307
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12

Abstract

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Post-operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is a neurological complication that relatively frequently occurs in older people after anesthesia/surgery, with varying durations and significant differences in the severity of cognitive impairment. POCD is mainly characterized by memory loss mostly without consciousness disorders, accompanied by abnormal emotions, behaviors, and language, mostly without consciousness disorder. The clinical performance of POCD lacks specificity but can reflect the severity of cognitive impairment in patients. The diagnosis of POCD cannot be separated from the evaluation of perioperative cognitive function of patients, and the more popular and accepted method is neuropsychological tests (NPTs).

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