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Neuropsychological Profile and Dementia Symptom Recognition in Help‐Seekers in a Community Early‐Detection Program in Hong Kong
Author(s) -
Tang Jennifer Y.M.,
Wong Gloria H.Y.,
Ng Carmen K.M.,
Kwok Dorothy T.S.,
Lee Maggie N.Y.,
Dai David L.K.,
Lum Terry Y.S.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/jgs.13938
Subject(s) - activities of daily living , medicine , dementia , neurocognitive , clinical dementia rating , neuropsychology , cognition , psychiatry , gerontology , cognitive impairment , disease , pathology
Objectives To examine the neuropsychological and clinical profile of help‐seekers in an early‐detection community dementia program and to explore any relationship between profiles and time to seek help. Design Cross‐sectional. Setting Early‐detection community dementia program. Participants Help‐seekers (N = 1,005) with subjective cognitive complaints or complaints from an informant. Measurements Neurocognitive testing, including the Cantonese Mini‐Mental State Examination ( MMSE ), Clock Drawing Test, Digit Span, and Fuld Object Memory Evaluation and other clinical and functioning assessments, including the Clinical Dementia Rating ( CDR ), activities of daily living ( ADL s), instrumental ADL s ( IADL s), and depressive symptoms. Time since the person or an informant reported that they first noticed symptoms. Results Eighty‐six percent of help‐seekers had at least very mild dementia ( CDR score ≥0.5). Cognitive performance was moderately impaired (mean MMSE score 18.4 ± 6.1). They required some assistance with IADL s, had very mild ADL impairments, and had few depressive symptoms. Median time to seek assessment was 12 months (interquartile range 7–30 months) according to the person or the informant (an adult child in 75% of the sample). Using the median‐split method, time to seek assessment was classified as early (0–12 months) and late (>12 months). Worse cognitive and IADL performance but not ADL performance or depressive symptoms were observed in late than in early help‐seekers. Longer time intervals between symptom recognition and early assessment showed a trend of further impairments on all measures except ADL s. Conclusion A time interval of more than 12 months between symptom recognition and early assessment appears to be associated with worse cognitive function upon presentation.