Evaluating Cognitive Changes in Patients Receiving Outpatient Alcohol Treatment

Chronic alcohol use has been linked to various physical health concerns, neurological changes, and cognitive deficits. Research has shown that some of these neurologic and cognitive deficits can improve over time following detoxification and abstinence; however, the exact nature or timeline of this recovery process has not been established. The aim of the current study is to identify cognitive deficits and changes present in the alcohol addiction treatment population, the influence of cognitive deficits on treatment completion, and the effect of previous engagement in treatment (which is indicative of previous relapse) on cognitive functioning at both treatment onset and treatment completion. Results suggest that individuals within an intensive outpatient AUD program experienced improvements in language and overall cognitive functioning. Additional variables approaching significance include the subtests of story learning, figure copy, semantic fluency, digit span, coding, and the overall attention index, all of which exhibited small to medium effect sizes. In contrast, impairments in cognitive functioning were not related to treatment drop-out. Finally, previous treatment engagement was not suggestive of worse cognitive functioning. Despite reduced sample size, these results provide some insight into the variability in cognitive functioning within AUD, suggesting that providers may need to consider tailoring treatment for those who present with various cognitive impairments. Programs that account for memory, executive functioning, and processing speed impairments may assist their patient’s in the retention of information presented during treatment, thus improving rehabilitation and increasing subsequent success in sobriety