Diabetes is a chronic disease that leads to several complications. In this group patient with impaired cognitive functioning were determined.
The aim of the study: To evaluate the effectiveness of working memory and executive functions in patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
Material and methods: Study included 68 people (men n=42; 61.76%) aged 18-55 years. Subjects were divided into 2 groups: group 1--healthy (n=37; n=19 males, 51.35%; mean age = 31.52 years; SD = 9.30) and group 2--treated for type 2 diabetes (n=31; male n=23, 74.2%; mean age = 46.74 years; SD = 7.88). The study used the Card Sorting Test performance in Wisconsin (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test-WCST), designed to assess the effectiveness of working memory and executive functions. Results. Statistically significant differences between the two groups in the Card Sorting Test performance in Wisconsin were observed.
Conclusions: Patients with type 2 diabetes achieve poorer results in the Card Sorting Test performance in Wisconsin compared to healthy subjects. The obtained results suggest the weakening of the effectiveness of working memory and executive functions in patients with insulin-independent diabetes.