The Correlation between a New Online Cognitive Test (the Brain Assessment) and Widely Used In-Person Neuropsychological Tests.

INTRODUCTION: There are several problems with standard in-person neuropsychological assessments, such as habituation, necessity of human resources, and difficulty of in-person assessment under societal conditions during the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019. Thus, we developed an online cognitive test (the Brain Assessment [BA]). In this study, we investigated the correlation between the results of the BA and those of established neuropsychological tests. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Seventy-seven elderly persons (mean 71.3 ± 5.1 years old; range 65-86; male:female = 45:32) were recruited through the internet. Correlations were evaluated between the BA and the following widely used neuropsychological tests: the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), the Raven's colored progressive matrices (RCPM), the logical memory I and II of the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test, the word fluency (WF) test, and the Trail-Making TestA/B. RESULTS: We found moderate correlations between the total cognitive score of the BA and the total score of the MMSE (r = 0.433, p < 0.001), as well as between the total BA score and the total RCPM score (r = 0.582, p < 0.001) and time to complete the RCPM (r = 0.455, p < 0.001). Moderate correlations were also observed between the cognitive score of the memory of words BA subtest and the LM-I (r = 0.518, p < 0.001), the mental rotation subtest and figure drawing (r = 0.404, p < 0.001), the logical reasoning subtest and total RCPM score (r = 0.491, p < 0.001), and the memory of numbers and words subtests and WF (memory of numbers and total WF: r = 0.456, p < 0.001; memory of words and total WF: r = 0.571, p < 0.001). DISCUSSION: We found that the BA showed moderate correlations between established neuropsychological tests for intellect, memory, visuospatial function, and frontal function. The MMSE and the RCPM reflect Spearman's s-factor and g-factor, respectively, and thus the BA also covered both factors. CONCLUSION: The BA is a useful tool for assessing the cognitive function of generally healthy elderly persons.

Online Tool (Brain Assessment) for the Detection of Cognitive Function Changes during Aging.

INTRODUCTION: It is well-known that cognitive function declines with age. In order to detect changes in cognitive function, cognitive tests should be performed repeatedly. Currently existing cognitive tests come in only a single version, so the subject is likely to remember the contents with repeated testing. And, under the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), in-person assessment should be avoided. This study was performed to develop a new cognitive test (brain assessment, BA) that has 5 versions and can be performed on a personal computer (PC) through the Internet. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Five thousand subjects performed the online BA, which consisted of 5 subtests: number memory, word memory, mental rotation test, N-back test, and judgment test. We standardized the raw scores (cognitive scores, CSs) using mean and standard deviation, which were 50 and 10, respectively. Then, we calculated the mean CS for each sex and age, plotted the relationships between ages and mean CSs on figures, and calculated the formula of cognitive changes during normal aging. RESULTS: The CSs of all subtests decreased with aging. The regression coefficient was from -0.31 to -0.45. It is noteworthy that in most subtests, the CSs started to increase at 85 years of age. DISCUSSION: Our BA has 5 versions and can be done on a PC using the Internet. We tested the BA in a large number of subjects, and the standard values of CSs were measured in individuals up to 89 years of age. By performing this test repeatedly, subjects can evaluate the degree of their cognitive decline. If the rate of cognitive decline is greater than that predicted using the normalized formula, the subjects can undertake strategies to improve their control of lifestyle-related diseases or other habits of daily living. CONCLUSION: The BA can be easily taken online using a PC, and its scores linearly declined with normal aging. The BA will be useful for detecting longitudinal cognitive changes and comparing them to the pattern seen in normal aging.