Memory span and long-term memory deficits in brain-impaired patients

Measures of verbal and visuospatial memory span and long-term memory were obtained from 21 brain-impaired and 21 neurologically unimpaired Veterans Administration medical patients. Significant deficits in both memory span and long-term memory were observed in the brain-impaired patients. Contrary to predictions from the experimental literature, memory span tests that require more processing of item content and location were not superior in detecting the memory span deficits. Discriminant function analyses revealed that measures of verbal and visuospatial long-term memory provided unique discrimination between the brain-impaired and unimpaired patients. However, when memory span measures were analyzed alone, inclusion of more than one measure of memory span did not provide additional unique discrimination. Implications for the clinical assessment of memory functioning are discussed.