Immediate story recall in elderly individuals with memory complaints: how much does it contribute to memory assessment?. (13th March 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Coutinho, Gabriel; Drummond, Cláudia; de Oliveira-Souza, Ricardo; Moll, Jorge; Tovar-Moll, Fernanda; Mattos, Paulo
• Editors: Brodaty, Henry
• Is Part Of: International psychogeriatrics. Volume 27:Number 10(2015:Oct.)
• Page Start: 1679
• Page End: 1686
• Publication Date: 2015-03-13
• Subjects: mild cognitive impairment, -- memory, -- Alzheimer's disease, -- story memory, -- logical memory, -- aging; Geriatric psychiatry -- Periodicals; 618.9768905
• DOI: 10.1017/S1041610215000307
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1041-6102

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Background: Prose memory tests exhibit ecological validity, but the influence of non-memory functions on immediate recall in elderly subjects with memory complaints has not been fully investigated. This study examined (1) whether the ability to immediately recall a story can distinguish among clinical controls, amnesic mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and (2) which cognitive functions contribute to immediate recall performance. Methods: A total of 73 consecutive volunteers (50 women and 23 men) aged 47–88 (mean age = 71.85 ± 9.41) and with a mean schooling level of 12.51 (SD = 4.09) participated in the experiment. All individuals were seeking specialized evaluation because of memory complaints. Diagnoses were made by considering clinical, neuropsychological, and MRI assessments collected by a multidisciplinary team of neurologists, neuropsychologists, and speech-language therapists. A total of 26 individuals were classified as clinical controls; 27 as MCI patients; and 20 as having AD dementia. All individuals in the AD group had a Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) ≤ 1. Results: Immediate recall was only able to distinguish AD subjects from MCI patients and clinical controls ( p > 0.05). Stepwise multiple linear regression analysis revealed that mental status (MMSE), semantic memory (WAIS-III vocabulary) and episodic memory (RAVLT primacy) explained approximately 62% of the variance in immediate recall. Conclusions: Understanding the value and limitations of immediate story recall in distinguishing between MCI and AD may help clinicians in better choosing cognitive tests to diagnose MCI.