Abstract
We administered 3 commonly employed tests of mental status (the Information-Memory-Concentration test [IMC], the Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE], and the Dementia Rating Scale [DRS]) to 92 patients with probable dementia of the Alzheimer type. The 3 tests were readministered to 55 of the patients (2-year subgroup) approximately 1 year later, and administered a 3rd time to 20 of the patients (3-year subgroup) approximately 2 years after their initial assessment. In all cases, scores on the 3 tests were highly correlated with each other. Examination of the annual rate of change (ARC) in score for the 2-year subgroup revealed an average decline of—3.24 error points on the IMC, 2.81 points on the MMSE, and 11.38 points on the DRS. Of the 3 tests, only the DRS evidenced greater sensitivity to change with increasing dementia severity. In the 3-year subgroup, the ARC between years 1 and 2 was not correlated with ARC between years 2 and 3 for any of the 3 tests. This finding suggests that a patient's rate of progression in 1 year may bear little relationship to future rate of decline.
- © 1990 by Edgell Communications, Inc.
AAN Members
We have changed the login procedure to improve access between AAN.com and the Neurology journals. If you are experiencing issues, please log out of AAN.com and clear history and cookies. (For instructions by browser, please click the instruction pages below). After clearing, choose preferred Journal and select login for AAN Members. You will be redirected to a login page where you can log in with your AAN ID number and password. When you are returned to the Journal, your name should appear at the top right of the page.
AAN Non-Member Subscribers
Purchase access
Disputes & Debates: Rapid online correspondence
REQUIREMENTS
If you are uploading a letter concerning an article:
You must have updated your disclosures within six months: http://submit.neurology.org
Your co-authors must send a completed Publishing Agreement Form to Neurology Staff (not necessary for the lead/corresponding author as the form below will suffice) before you upload your comment.
If you are responding to a comment that was written about an article you originally authored:
You (and co-authors) do not need to fill out forms or check disclosures as author forms are still valid
and apply to letter.
Submission specifications:
- Submissions must be < 200 words with < 5 references. Reference 1 must be the article on which you are commenting.
- Submissions should not have more than 5 authors. (Exception: original author replies can include all original authors of the article)
- Submit only on articles published within 6 months of issue date.
- Do not be redundant. Read any comments already posted on the article prior to submission.
- Submitted comments are subject to editing and editor review prior to posting.