The Family Pictures subtest of the WMS-III: Relationship to verbal and visual memory following temporal lobectomy for intractable epilepsy

Abstract

This study examined the extent to which the Family Pictures (FP) subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scale–Third Edition (WMS-III) is related to verbal memory measures and right mesial temporal integrity. Epilepsy patients who underwent temporal lobectomy did not differ in the extent to which FP scores changed from before to after surgery, although postoperative FP performance was worse in those who underwent right temporal lobectomy than in those who underwent left temporal lobectomy. FP was most strongly related to the Logical Memory subtest from the WMS-III. Results suggest that FP measures both verbal and visual memory and is minimally sensitive to lateralization of temporal lobectomy.