Selective effect of lithium on cognitive performance in man.

Journal article

The effects of lithium on psychomotor performance were examined in six healthy male volunteers (aged 26-31 years) and compared with those of a similar control population. Three computerised psychomotor tests (serial reaction time, semantic reasoning and syntatic reasoning) were administered before lithium, after 5 and 22 days of lithium carbonate (800 mg/d) and 4 days and 1 month after stopping the lithium. The only significant effect was an impairment of semantic reasoning during the chronic (22 day) test. This suggests a selective effect of lithium on associative mental tasks and may explain the subjects' experience of slowing in recall of object names whilst taking lithium.

Authors: Glue, P; Nutt, D; Cowen, P; Broadbent, D

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Psychopharmacology
• Volume: 91
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 109-111
• Publication date: 1987-01-01
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00690937
• EISSN: 1432-2072
• ISSN: 0033-3158
• Language: English
• Keywords: Humans; Reaction Time; Cognition; Lithium; Semantics; Thinking; Verbal Behavior; Male; Adult