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P1‐451: Development of a composite score of the German CERAD‐Plus‐Neuropsychological assessment battery
Author(s) -
Schmid Nicole,
Ehrensperger Michael,
Berres Manfred,
Monsch Andreas
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
alzheimer's and dementia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.713
H-Index - 118
eISSN - 1552-5279
pISSN - 1552-5260
DOI - 10.1016/j.jalz.2011.05.733
Subject(s) - medicine , neuropsychological assessment , verbal fluency test , neuropsychology , dementia , neuropsychological test , psychomotor learning , fluency , audiology , cognition , psychology , disease , psychiatry , mathematics education
not accurately reflect quality of educational experience in African-Americans. The present study examined the extent to which quality of education, even after controlling for formal years of education, accounts for the ethnoracial differences in cognitive performance between African Americans and WhiteNon-Hispanics (WNHs)withAlzheimer’s disease (AD).Methods: In this retrospective study, participants included 244 patients from the University of Pennsylvania Alzheimer’s Disease Center who were diagnosed with AD and self-identified as African Americans (n 1⁄4 51) or White Non-Hispanics (n 1⁄4 193). The Wechsler Test of Adult Reading (WTAR) was used as an estimate of quality of education. Linear regression modeling was used to assess the effect of ethnoracial classification on individual psychometric test scores, and adjusted for demographic variables and for WTAR standard score. Results: In an analysis that controlled for traditional demographics, including age, sex, and years of formal education, African Americans scored significantly lower than WNHs on the Mini-Mental State Examination, as well as on neuropsychological tests of memory, attention, and language. However, after adjusting also for reading level, all previously observed differences were significantly attenuated. Conclusions: These findings suggest that quality, and not just quantity, of education needs to be taken into account when assessing cognitive performance in African Americans with AD. Though more research is required, the use of an oral reading assessment has the potential to reduce racial biases in the diagnosis and assessment of AD.