Originally published in 1998, Neuropsychological Effects of the Psychiatric Disorders provided a comprehensive review of the background and literature concerning effects of the psychiatric disorders on cognitive functions at the time. It follows the classification of disease proposed by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) and each condition is described in terms of its history, details regarding physical investigations of brain functioning in the disorder, and an extensive review and formulation of the implications of that disorder to cognitive functioning. A selective review of cognitive effects of treatments of the psychiatric disorders both pharmacological and physical is also included.
Each chapter features a fully worked case of a disorder in association with the background and presentation of the patient, as well as a full listing of the patient's performance on specific neuropsychological tests. Techniques for differentiating dementia from depressive illness, as well as clinical guidelines and decision rules in areas of the factitious and dissociative disorders are described. The text is written with an eye to the history of these conditions and contains anecdotal material regarding interesting findings and red herrings.