An objective evaluation of the credibility of the clinical presentation is a widely endorsed practice standard in neuropsychological assessment. Professional organizations recommend administering multiple performance and symptom validity tests (PVTs and SVTs) as part of every comprehensive evaluation of cognitive and emotional functioning. Estimates of the prevalence of non-credible presentation vary as a function of clinical characteristics, instruments/cutoffs used, and the presence/absence of external incentives to appear impaired. Paradoxically, patients with moderate-to-severe TBI tend to fail PVTs at a lower rate than those with uncomplicated mild TBI. On the other hand, PVT failures in patients with severe cerebrovascular accidents are often interpreted as evidence of genuine and severe cognitive impairment and subsequently discounted as false positives during the acute stage. However, as patients with mild TBI are increasingly referred for rehabilitation services, the validity of the self-reported cognitive deficits and psychological symptoms is becoming an especially salient clinical issue. Failure to screen for non-credible impairments and symptoms risks providing costly services for non-existent conditions while leaving other diagnoses that drive the clinical presentation untreated. This special issue calls for papers that provide a conceptual framework or empirical evidence on how to incorporate PVTs and SVTs in rehabilitation efforts to optimize clinical outcomes.
Examples of topics of interest for the special issue:
PVT and SVT scores as predictors of the rehabilitation outcomes
Clinical utility of PVTs and SVTs during neurorehabilitation
The predictive value of PVTs and SVTs in the differential diagnosis of functional neurologic disorders
The relevance of PVTs and SVTs in mild versus moderate/severe traumatic brain injury
The clinical utility of PVTs and SVTs in case conceptualization in rehabilitation settings
The long-term costs (in health care expenditures and protracted recovery) of failure to detect non-credible cognitive impairment and self-reported psychiatric symptoms
Relevance of PVTs and SVTs to the clinical management of mild TBI/persistent post-concussion syndrome
The role of PVTs and SVTs in establishing the validity of baseline testing in sports-related concussions
Therapeutic assessment: converting PVT/SVT failures into a clinically productive conversation in a neurorehabilitation setting
Special Issue Editor
Laszlo A. Erdodi, PhD, C.Psych.
University of Windsor, Canada lerdodi@gmail.com
Tentative Timeline
Deadline for submitting abstracts: March 30, 2024
Deadline for submitting manuscripts: July 30, 2024
Instruction for Authors
Interested authors can submit abstracts or inquiries to the Guest Editor via e-mail to determine the suitability of the manuscript to the special issue. If deemed appropriate, the authors will receive a link for submission to the peer review system (Editorial Manager).
About the Journal
NeuroRehabilitation is an international, interdisciplinary, peer-reviewed journal that publishes manuscripts focused on evidence based, practical information relevant to all aspects of neurologic rehabilitation.
