Differentiating illiteracy from Alzheimer's disease by using neuropsychological assessments

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (10) ◽  
pp. 1560-1568 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jung-Hae Youn ◽  
Maryse Siksou ◽  
R. Scott Mackin ◽  
Jung-Seok Choi ◽  
Jeanyung Chey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Boston Naming Test ◽  
Neuropsychological Measures ◽  
Drawing Test ◽  
Neuropsychological Assessments ◽  
Learning Test ◽  
Naming Test

ABSTRACTBackground: In Asia, where illiteracy rates are high, determining the degree to which neuropsychological measures can be used to identify cognitive impairment in illiterate elders is important. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using formal neuropsychological assessments to distinguish healthy illiterate elders from dementia patients.Methods: We compared the cognitive performance of healthy elders who were illiterate (illiterate NC, n = 25) with those who were literate (literate NC, n = 25), literate patients with mild Alzheimer's disease (literate AD, n = 25), and illiterate patients with mild AD (illiterate AD, n = 25). Neuropsychological measures included the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the verbal fluency test, the Boston naming test, the Rosen drawing test, and the verbal learning test.Results: In the between-group analyses, the scores on all tests, except verbal fluency and recognition memory, were lower for illiterate NC compared to the literate NC. The scores on the MMSE, Boston naming test, Rosen drawing test, and immediate free recall could not distinguish the illiterate NC from literate AD. However, the scores on all tests, except the Rosen drawing test, could distinguish illiterate NC from illiterate AD. ROC analyses showed the same pattern of results. In addition, age-, sex-, and education-matched cut-off scores of all tests, except immediate recall and delayed recall trials of the verbal learning test, showed good specificities in participants who were illiterate compared to those in participants who were literate.Conclusion: These findings suggest that the impact of literacy on neuropsychological test performance is an important aspect of cognitive evaluations for elders who are illiterate.

scholarly journals Prospective and retrospective memory in mild Alzheimer's disease

2008 ◽  
Vol 66 (2b) ◽  
pp. 318-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergilaine Pereira Martins ◽  
Benito Pereira Damasceno
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Prospective Memory ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Wilcoxon Test ◽  
Retrospective Memory ◽  
Memory Tests ◽  
Memory And Attention ◽  
Auditory Verbal Learning ◽  
Learning Test

OBJECTIVE: To study prospective and retrospective memory in patients with mild Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHOD: Twenty mild AD and 20 matched normal control subjects were included. Diagnosis of AD was based on DSM-IV and NINCDS-ADRDA criteria, using CDR 1 and MMSE scores from 16 to 24 for mild AD. All subjects underwent retrospective (Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, RAVLT) and prospective memory tests (the appointment and belonging subtests of the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test, RBMT; and two tests made to this study: the clock and the animals test), as well as MMSE, neuropsychological counterproofs, and Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia. The data was analyzed with Wilcoxon test and Spearman correlation coefficient. RESULTS: AD patients performed worse than controls in prospective and retrospective memory tests, with poorer performance in retrospective memory. There was no correlation between prospective memory and attention, visual perception, executive function, or depression scores. CONCLUSION: Prospective and, in higher degree, retrospective memory are primarily and independently impaired in mild AD.

scholarly journals Can a combination of two neuropsychological tests screen for mild neurocognitive disorder better than each test alone? A cross-sectional study

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Reem Mohamed Sabry ELbedewy ◽  
Mohamed ELOKL
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Fluency ◽  
Neurocognitive Disorder ◽  
Boston Naming Test ◽  
Clock Drawing Test ◽  
Clock Drawing ◽  
Neurocognitive Tests ◽  
Drawing Test ◽  
Neurocognitive Test ◽  
Animal Category ◽  
Naming Test

Abstract Background Early symptoms of dementia may not be apparent and are sometimes even concealed during short office visits initiated for other complaints. The aim of the study is to find out if the combined use of VF/CDT, VF/BNT, or CDT/BNT could improve the accuracy of detecting mild NCD in an outpatient setting, compared with either test used alone. Participants Community-dwelling older adults, attending the outpatient Geriatrics Clinic at Ain Shams University hospitals between June 1, 2017 and January 31, 2018. All participants received a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) which included the mini-mental state examination test. Participants with a score of less than 24 and fulfil DSM5 criteria for mild neurocognitive disorder (NCD) are considered cognitively impaired otherwise are considered normal. Then participants were further examined by the Arabic versions of CDT, BNT, and VF animal category. Results We recruited 143 male and female participants mean age 67.17 ± 5.41, females are 56.6%, and 48.9% of all participants have mild NCD according to DSM5 criteria. AUC for individual neurocognitive tests in illiterates is 0.893 for clock drawing test, 0.907 for verbal fluency animal category, and 0.904 for Boston naming test, while AUC for neurocognitive test combinations in illiterates is 0.932 for VF + CDT, 0.917 for VF + BNT, and 0.932 for BNT + CDT. On the other hand, AUC for individual neurocognitive tests in educated participants is 0.925 for clock drawing test, 0.921 for verbal fluency animal category, and 0.907 for Boston naming test, whereas AUC for neurocognitive test combinations in educated participants is 0.958 for VF + CDT, 0.963 for VF + BNT, and 0.953 for BNT + CDT. Conclusion From the current study, we can conclude that any of the studied combinations have better diagnostic accuracy (although small) than individual test in both literate and illiterate older adults.

scholarly journals Metamemory monitoring in Alzheimer’s disease A systematic review

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 337-352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Brandt ◽  
Raquel Luiza Santos de Carvalho ◽  
Tatiana Belfort ◽  
Marcia Cristina Nascimento Dourado
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Verbal Learning ◽  
Experimental Investigations ◽  
Memory Functioning ◽  
Learning Test ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Metamemory Monitoring ◽  
And Control

ABSTRACT Metamemory is the awareness of one’s own knowledge and control of memory, and refers to the online ability to gather information about the current state of the memory system. Objective: Metamemory is one’s own knowledge and control of memory. A systematic review was performed to identify the types of tasks used for evaluating metamemory monitoring, the stimuli used in these tasks, their limitations and the outcomes in people with Alzheimer’s disease (PwAD). Methods: This systematic review followed PRISMA methodology. A search of Pubmed, Scopus and Web of Science electronic databases was carried out in September, 2018, identifying experimental investigations of metamemory and dementia. Results: We included 21 studies. The most common tasks used were judgement of learning, feeling of knowing, judgement of confidence and global prediction. The rates of discrepancy between PwAD and caregivers still need further research. The Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test was the most used list of words. PwAD are able to accurately rate their memory functioning and performance, when the evaluation is done soon afterwards. PwAD tend to overestimate their functioning and performance when the judgement involves forward-looking vision. Conclusion: In the context of metamemory impairment, clinicians and caregivers should seek interventions aiming to identify compensatory styles of functioning. This systematic review provides initial evidence for the use of metamemory measures as part of broader assessments evaluating Alzheimer’s disease.

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