Clinical characteristics and diagnostic accuracy of the revised Addenbrooke Cognitive Examination (ACE-R) in older adults with a low educational level / Características clínicas e acurácia do Exame Cognitivo Addenbrooke Versão revisada (ACE-R) em idosos com baixa escolaridade

ABSTRACT Objective: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination Revised (ACE-R) as a cognitive screening tool for older adults with low levels of schooling and healthy aging, MCI and dementia in Brazil. Methods: All participants underwent neurological and psychiatric examinations and were administered a validated version of ACE-R. Results: A total of 85 participants were evaluated; most were females (84.7%, n = 72). The post hoc analysis showed statistical differences in ACE-R total scores between older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and controls (p < 0.001) and in subitem scores including verbal fluency, language, visuospatial skills and attention (p < 0.001). The visual-spatial skills subitem was the most strongly correlated with schooling level (r = 0.509, p < 0.001), whereas late, immediate recall and recognition memory were not influenced by schooling. The ACE-R had the best diagnostic accuracy in discriminating between MCI and controls = 0.69 (<57.5; 80/66), MD and controls = 0.98 (<50; 100/96), MCI and MD = 0.86 (<49.5; 100/74). Conclusions: ACE-R and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores for older adults with MCI and controls were significantly lower than those reported in similar studies. These preliminary findings support the need for establishing reliable cut-off scores for cognitive assessment of older Brazilian adults with low schooling at risk for dementia taking into consideration ecological and local variables.

RESUMO Objetivo: Determinar a precisão diagnóstica do Exame Cognitivo de Addenbrooke (ACE-R) como uma ferramenta de triagem cognitiva para adultos idosos com baixos níveis de educação e envelhecimento saudável, MCI e demência no Brasil. Métodos: Os indivíduos submeteram-se à avaliação clínica e psiquiátrica e foi administrada uma versão validada da versão revisada da bateria cognitiva ACE-R (ACE-R). Resultados: Oitenta e cinco indivíduos foram avaliados, predominando as mulheres (84,7%, n = 72). Na análise post hoc, controles e CCL exibiram diferenças estatísticas nos escores globais do ACE-R (p < 0,001) e seus subdomínios, incluindo fluência verbal, linguagem, habilidades visuoespaciais e atenção (p < 0,001). A habilidade visuoespacial foi o item mais correlacionado com a escolaridade (r = 0,509, p < 0,001), enquanto a memória tardia, de recordação e reconhecimento não foi influenciada pela educação. A precisão do ACE-R produziu melhores resultados para CCL versus controles = 0,69 (<57,5; 80/66), demência versus controles = 0,98 (<50; 100/96), CCL versus demência = 0,86 (<49,5; 100/74). Conclusões: Os escores de ACE-R e MMSE para controles e CCL foram consideravelmente inferiores aos encontrados em estudos semelhantes. Resultados preliminares confirmam a necessidade de estudos brasileiros estabelecerem pontos de corte confiáveis para baterias cognitivas em idosos com baixa escolaridade e em risco de demência, reconhecendo variáveis ecológicas e regionais.

Validation Study of the Chinese Version of Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination III for Diagnosing Mild Cognitive Impairment and Mild Dementia

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: There are only a few cognitive screening tests for the Chinese-speaking population, and so this study aimed to validate the Chinese version of Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination III (ACE-III) for detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia. Its diagnostic accuracy was compared with the Chinese versions of the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). METHODS: The 176 included individuals were divided into 3 groups: mild dementia group, MCI group, and normal control group. MMSE, MoCA, and ACE-III were administered to all participants by researchers who were blinded to the clinical grouping. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were analyzed. RESULTS: ACE-III exhibited good internal consistency and convergent validity. Age and education level significantly influenced the total ACE-III scores. When screening MCI, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was significantly larger for ACE-III than for MMSE (0.88 vs. 0.72, p<0.05) and MoCA (0.88 vs. 0.76, p<0.05). ACE-III showed higher sensitivity (0.75) and specificity (0.89) than MMSE (0.64 and 0.63, respectively) and MoCA (0.67 and 0.77) at the optimal cutoff score of 88/89. For detecting mild dementia, ACE-III yielded satisfactory sensitivity (0.94) and specificity (0.83) at the optimal cutoff score of 74/75. The AUC of ACE-III was 0.95, which was comparable to those of MMSE (0.95) and MoCA (0.91). In participants with ≥12 years of education, the AUC was significantly larger for ACE-III than for MMSE when detecting MCI (0.90 vs. 0.68, p<0.05) and mild dementia (0.97 vs. 0.90, p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The present study has verified that ACE-III is a reliable and accurate tool for screening MCI and mild dementia in the Chinese-speaking population, and is significantly superior to MMSE and MoCA for detecting MCI.

Application of the Chinese version of the Addenbrooke's cognitive examination-Ⅲ in presbycusis with mild cognitive impairment / 中国基层医药

Objective@#To explore the reliability, validity and best cut-off value of Chinese version Addenbrooke's cognitive examination-Ⅲ(ACE-Ⅲ) in presbycusis patients with mild cognitive impairment(MCI).@*Methods@#A total of 43 presbycusis patients with mild cognitive impairment, 61 presbycusis patients with normal cognitive impairment and 60 healthy controls treated in outpatient clinic of department of otolaryngology in the Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University from January 2016 to October 2017 were enrolled.The Chinese version of mini mental state examination(MMSE), Montreal cognitive assessment(MoCA) and ACE-Ⅲ were used to evaluate cognitive function of subjects.The reliability and validity of the ACE-Ⅲ were analyzed with the SPSS 21.0, and the cut-off point was confirmed with the receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve analysis, and the value of the scale questionnaire in the diagnosis of presbycusis patients with MCI was assessed.@*Results@#Chinese version of ACE-Ⅲ had betler feasiblity, and the receiving rate, recovery rate and effivience were 100.0%, 100.0% and 94.9%, respetively.The Cronbach's alpha, split-half reliability and intraclass correlation coefficient were 0.870(P<0.05), 0.874(P<0.05) and 0.880(P<0.05), respectively.The patients in MCI group got a lower score in the sub-scale of attention/orientation, memory, verbal fluency, language and visual space of ACE-Ⅲ compared with those in NCI group and healthy control group, and the differences were statistically significant (F=48.042, 46.594, 35.442, 19.374, 256.19, 140.319, all P<0.001). The criteria validity calculated between the Chinese version of ACE-Ⅲ and MMSE was 0.802 (P<0.001). Factor analysis of the construct validity showed that the 26 items were classed into five domains.Every domain was sensitive and effective to discriminate between patients and healthy individuals(P<0.05). The Chinese version of ACE-Ⅲ showed significantly correlation with the total scores of MoCA(r=0.802, P<0, 001). When the cut-off value for diagnosis was 86.5, the largest area under the ROC curve for the Chinese version of ACE-Ⅲ was 0.98(95% CI: 0.897-0.996). The relative sensitivity and specificity were 100.0% and 95.0%, respectively.@*Conclusion@#The Chinese version of ACE-Ⅲ had better internal consistency, reliability and validity, and is applicable for MCI assessment in elderly patients with presbycusis.Patients with presbycusis can be considered to have cognitive dysfunction with score of 86.5 by using this questionnaire.

Application of the Chinese version of the Addenbrooke＇s cognitive examination－Ⅲ in presbycusis with mild cognitive impairment / 中国基层医药

Objective To explore the reliability , validity and best cut －off value of Chinese version Addenbrooke＇s cognitive examination －Ⅲ(ACE－Ⅲ) in presbycusis patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods A total of 43 presbycusis patients with mild cognitive impairment ,61 presbycusis patients with normal cognitive impairment and 60 healthy controls treated in outpatient clinic of department of otolaryngology in the Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University from January 2016 to October 2017 were enrolled.The Chinese version of mini mental state examination(MMSE),Montreal cognitive assessment ( MoCA) and ACE －Ⅲ were used to evaluate cognitive function of subjects.The reliability and validity of the ACE －Ⅲwere analyzed with the SPSS 21.0,and the cut－off point was confirmed with the receiver operating characteristic ( ROC) curve analysis, and the value of the scale questionnaire in the diagnosis of presbycusis patients with MCI was assessed.Results Chinese version of ACE －Ⅲhad betler feasiblity, and the receiving rate, recovery rate and effivience were 100.0%, 100.0% and 94.9%, respetively.The Cronbach＇s alpha,split－half reliability and intraclass correlation coefficient were 0.870(P＜0.05), 0.874(P＜0.05) and 0.880(P＜0.05),respectively.The patients in MCI group got a lower score in the sub －scale of attention／orientation,memory,verbal fluency,language and visual space of ACE －Ⅲ compared with those in NCI group and healthy control group ,and the differences were statistically significant ( F ＝48.042,46.594,35.442, 19.374,256.19,140.319,all P＜0.001).The criteria validity calculated between the Chinese version of ACE －Ⅲand MMSE was 0.802 (P＜0.001).Factor analysis of the construct validity showed that the 26 items were classed into five domains.Every domain was sensitive and effective to discriminate between patients and healthy individuals (P＜0.05).The Chinese version of ACE －Ⅲ showed significantly correlation with the total scores of MoCA ( r＝0.802,P＜0,001).When the cut －off value for diagnosis was 86.5,the largest area under the ROC curve for the Chinese version of ACE－Ⅲwas 0.98(95%CI:0.897－0.996).The relative sensitivity and specificity were 100.0%and 95.0%,respectively.Conclusion The Chinese version of ACE －Ⅲ had better internal consistency ,reliability and validity,and is applicable for MCI assessment in elderly patients with presbycusis.Patients with presbycusis can be considered to have cognitive dysfunction with score of 86.5 by using this questionnaire.

Evolution of short cognitive test performance in stroke patients with vascular cognitive impairment and vascular dementia: Baseline evaluation and follow-up / Evolução do desempenho em testes cognitivos breves de pacientes com acidente vascular cerebral com comprometimento cognitivo vascular e demência vascular: avaliação inicial e acompanhamento

ABSTRACT. There is limited evidence about the progression of cognitive performance during the post-stroke stage. Objective: To assess the evolution of cognitive performance in stroke patients without vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), patients with vascular mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and patients with vascular dementia (VD). Methods: A prospective cohort of stroke outpatients from two secondary medical centers in Lima, Peru was studied. We performed standardized evaluations at definitive diagnosis (baseline evaluation), and control follow-ups at 6 and 12 months, including a battery of short cognitive tests: Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE), and INECO Frontal Screening (IFS). Results: 152 outpatients completed the follow-up, showing progressive increase in mean score on the CDR(0.34 to 0.46), contrary to the pattern observed on the ACE and IFS (78.18 to 76.48 and 23.63 to 22.24). The box plot for the CDR test showed that VCI patients had progressive worsening (0.79 to 0.16). Conversely, this trend was not observed in subjects without VCI. The box plot for the ACE and IFS showed that, for the majority of the differentiated stroke types, both non-VCI and VCI patients had progressive worsening. Conclusion: According to both ACE and IFS results during a 1-year follow-up, the cognitive performance of stroke patients worsened, a trend which was particularly consistent in infarction-type stroke patients.

RESUMO. Há evidências limitadas sobre a progressão do desempenho cognitivo durante o estágio pós- acidente vascular cerebral (AVC). Objetivo: Avaliar a evolução do desempenho cognitivo em pacientes com AVC sem comprometimento cognitivo vascular (SCCV), pacientes com comprometimento cognitivo leve vascular (CCL-V) e pacientes com demência vascular (DV). Métodos: Coorte prospectivo de pacientes ambulatoriais com AVC de dois centros médicos secundários de Lima, Peru. Realizamos avaliações padronizadas no diagnóstico definitivo (avaliação inicial) e controles aos 6 e 12 meses depois, incluindo um conjunto de testes cognitivos breves: Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE), and INECO Frontal Screening (IFS). Resultados: Completaram o estudo 152 pacientes ambulatoriais, mostrando que as médias de pontuação da CDR apresentaram aumento progressivo (0,34 a 0,46), contrariamente ao observado com ACE e IFS (78,18 a 76,48 e 23,63 a 22,24). A soma das caixas do teste CDR mostrou que os pacientes com comprometimento cognitivo vascular (CCL-V e DV) apresentaram piora progressiva (0,79 a 0,16). Por outro lado, em indivíduos SCCV, essa tendência não foi observada. O gráfico box-plot para ACE e IFS mostrou que, para a maioria dos tipos de AVC observados, tanto os pacientes SCCV como aqueles com CCV apresentaram piora progressiva. Conclusão: De acordo com os resultados de ACE e IFS durante o acompanhamento de 1 ano, o desempenho cognitivo em pacientes com AVC piora, o que é particularmente consistente em pacientes com AVC tipo infarto.