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Sensitivity of the WAIS-R FULD components to dementia ratings
740
Abstracts /Archives
of Clinical Neuropsychology
15 (2000) 653-850
disease. Eight individuals (mean age=77.88) with a recent, formal diagnosis of dementia of the Alzheimer’s type @AT patients), and 8 age-matched individuals (mean = 75.63) with no such diagnosis (controls) were administered a customized subset of the ANAM battery, the Dementia Screening Battery. It consists of 6 tasks, including simple reaction time (SRT), 2-choice reaction time (2CH), matching-to-sample (M2S), running memory-continuous performance (CPT), Stemberg 6-letter memory (ST6), and spatial discrimination (SPD), and it requires 30-45 minutes to complete. Cognitive performance on the ANAM-Dementia Screening Battery was assessed in terms of both accuracy (percent correct) and efficiency (number of correct responses per minute) on the 6 tasks. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) on accuracy scores indicated that, compared to the controls, the DAT patients were significantly impaired on the ANAM (composite) general indicator of brain function, Wilk’s Lambda=0.26; F (5,lO) =5.64, p < 0.01. Univariate tests indicated that the patients were significantly impaired on M2S, CPT, and ST6, all of which require integrity of working memory. Further, a discriminant function analysis revealed 93.8% correct classification of participants in their respective groups (1 patient was incorrectly classified as a control). These findings suggest that accuracy on the ANAM battery possesses a fairly high degree of utility in detecting impaired performance in these patients. A MANOVA on efficiency scores also revealed that the patients were significantly impaired on the ANAM general indicator of brain function, Wilk’s Lambda = 0.25; F (6,9)=4.46, p =0.02. Univariate tests indicated that, with the exception of simple reaction time, the patients were significantly impaired on all ANAM tasks. A discriminant function analysis correctly classified 100% of the participants based upon efficiency scores. Given the small size of the groups (n= 8) in the present study, this finding especially underscores the sensitivity of efficiency of performance on the ANAM battery in detection of the impairments shown by these patients.
Sensitivity of the WAIS-R FULD components Hardie JC, Franb SF:
to dementia
ratings
The purpose of the present study was to examine the utility of the WAIS-R FULD components in predicting levels of dementia. Subjects included 35 women and 18 men, ranging in age from 71 to 94 (M=76). All subjects underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation to determine the presence and extent of dementia. Subjects were given a dementia severity score based on the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR). A multiple regression analysis was utilized to predict levels of dementia according to the CDR using as independent variables WAIS-R subtests Digit Span (DS), Similarities (S), Block Design (BD), Digit Symbol (DSy) and Object Assembly (OA). Information and Vocabulary subjects were not utilized due to education effects and known resistance to dementing processes. The combination of components was not significant (Wilk’s lambda (5,47) = 1.142, p = 0.348). Beta coefficients for the individual components were also nonsignificant. Results indicate that the FULD components are not sensitive to the level of dementia, and bring into question the validity of the FULD configuration for the evaluation of dementia.
Neuropsychological differentiation Zakzanis E, Kielar A, Young DA.
of late life schizophrenia
and front0 temporal dementia
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and schizophrenia are characterized by disturbances in cognition, personality, behavior, and social functioning often leading to a decline in activities in daily living. Deterioration of comportment and disturbances in attention are typical in both disorders and manifest
Abstracts /Archives
of Clinical Neuropsychology
15 (2000) 653-850
disease. Eight individuals (mean age=77.88) with a recent, formal diagnosis of dementia of the Alzheimer’s type @AT patients), and 8 age-matched individuals (mean = 75.63) with no such diagnosis (controls) were administered a customized subset of the ANAM battery, the Dementia Screening Battery. It consists of 6 tasks, including simple reaction time (SRT), 2-choice reaction time (2CH), matching-to-sample (M2S), running memory-continuous performance (CPT), Stemberg 6-letter memory (ST6), and spatial discrimination (SPD), and it requires 30-45 minutes to complete. Cognitive performance on the ANAM-Dementia Screening Battery was assessed in terms of both accuracy (percent correct) and efficiency (number of correct responses per minute) on the 6 tasks. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) on accuracy scores indicated that, compared to the controls, the DAT patients were significantly impaired on the ANAM (composite) general indicator of brain function, Wilk’s Lambda=0.26; F (5,lO) =5.64, p < 0.01. Univariate tests indicated that the patients were significantly impaired on M2S, CPT, and ST6, all of which require integrity of working memory. Further, a discriminant function analysis revealed 93.8% correct classification of participants in their respective groups (1 patient was incorrectly classified as a control). These findings suggest that accuracy on the ANAM battery possesses a fairly high degree of utility in detecting impaired performance in these patients. A MANOVA on efficiency scores also revealed that the patients were significantly impaired on the ANAM general indicator of brain function, Wilk’s Lambda = 0.25; F (6,9)=4.46, p =0.02. Univariate tests indicated that, with the exception of simple reaction time, the patients were significantly impaired on all ANAM tasks. A discriminant function analysis correctly classified 100% of the participants based upon efficiency scores. Given the small size of the groups (n= 8) in the present study, this finding especially underscores the sensitivity of efficiency of performance on the ANAM battery in detection of the impairments shown by these patients.
Sensitivity of the WAIS-R FULD components Hardie JC, Franb SF:
to dementia
ratings
The purpose of the present study was to examine the utility of the WAIS-R FULD components in predicting levels of dementia. Subjects included 35 women and 18 men, ranging in age from 71 to 94 (M=76). All subjects underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation to determine the presence and extent of dementia. Subjects were given a dementia severity score based on the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR). A multiple regression analysis was utilized to predict levels of dementia according to the CDR using as independent variables WAIS-R subtests Digit Span (DS), Similarities (S), Block Design (BD), Digit Symbol (DSy) and Object Assembly (OA). Information and Vocabulary subjects were not utilized due to education effects and known resistance to dementing processes. The combination of components was not significant (Wilk’s lambda (5,47) = 1.142, p = 0.348). Beta coefficients for the individual components were also nonsignificant. Results indicate that the FULD components are not sensitive to the level of dementia, and bring into question the validity of the FULD configuration for the evaluation of dementia.
Neuropsychological differentiation Zakzanis E, Kielar A, Young DA.
of late life schizophrenia
and front0 temporal dementia
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and schizophrenia are characterized by disturbances in cognition, personality, behavior, and social functioning often leading to a decline in activities in daily living. Deterioration of comportment and disturbances in attention are typical in both disorders and manifest