The impact of alcohol, cannabis, amphetamine on executive function and its relationship to readiness to change

A lot of studies were directed to explore the relation between drug abuse and neuropsychological functions. Some studies reported that even after a long duration of disappearance of withdrawal or intoxication symptoms, many patients have obvious deterioration of cognitive functions. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between the substance use and the executive functions and its relationship to readiness of change. This is a cross-sectional study that was carried out at the Al-Amal Complex for Mental Health located in Al-Dammam and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The participants of the study were 114 (males) that included in two groups. The first was the experimental group of 83 (21 alcoholics, 31 amphetamine addicts, 31cannabis addicts). The second group, representing the control group, includes 31 healthy volunteers from Alamal Hospital employees. Their ages ranged between 20-60 years. The healthy control group was matched (as closely as possible) to the patient group in relation to the demographic characteristics (i.e. age, and sex), and education level. The STROOP Color-Word Test was used in a modified Arabic version which has been adjusted from the Victoria version to assess the cognitive flexibility, selective attention and to evaluate the interference effect that reflects the construction of executive function. For design fluency, the Five-Point test was used. The results revealed significant effects of substances abuse in most of the neuropsychological test indices that were used in this study. Thus, control groups did significantly better than the substance abuse groups in 3 of the stroop indices, which represent executive dysfunction. Similarly, significant differences between the control and the patients were found in all measures of designs and verbal fluencies. The worst performances in all measures were given by the Alcoholic patients, supporting the current main hypotheses. The most interesting findings was that the score in the Arabic URICA-24, was predictable by and significantly correlated with scores in preservation (verbal and nonverbal) errors as well as impaired semantic (category fluency), but not with phonemic fluency. It was concluded that, although drug abuse might be related to specific executive dysfunction, this impairment could vary according to the type of substance (Drug) and could be related to awareness of the problem and stage of motivation to change.