The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of age and schooling on Brief Cognitive Screening Battery (BCSB) performance in elderly residents in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The sample was composed of 470 elderly individuals, all of whom were evaluated using the BCSB. The results were analyzed by groups that were divided by age and schooling. Analyses of variances (ANOVAs) were performed to examine differences in performance between the age and schooling groups and interactions between age and schooling. Correlations between cognitive variables, age, and schooling were also analyzed. The sample consisted of 420 women (89.4%) and 50 men (10.6%). The mean age was 72.77 Ϯ 7.06 years, with average schooling of 9.54 Ϯ 5.32 years. The ANOVA showed that elderly individuals who were older than 80 years of age presented worse performance on memory tasks compared with the younger age groups. With regard to schooling, elderly individuals with low schooling presented worse performance on the Verbal Fluency and Clock Drawing tests and on the Mini Mental State Examination. The two-way ANOVA revealed a significant Age ϫ Schooling interaction for Mini Mental State Examination scores. The Age ϫ Schooling interaction impacted performance of the elderly in the evaluation of global cognitive function. The present results indicated a dissociation, in which age affected memory function, and schooling affected other cognitive functions.

ABSTRACT. In addition to drug treatment, surgical intervention represents an alternative to PD patients with motor deficits. The most common intervention is subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS). It is extremely important to perform a neuropsychological assessment in patients with STN-DBS, not only to identify losses related to the disease, but also to compare influence on cognition both pre and postoperatively. Objective: the objective of this systematic review was to investigate the instruments frequently used in studies related to STN-DBS in PD patients. Methods: articles were retrieved from Medline/Pubmed databases published in the 2007-2017 period using PRISMA criteria. Results: after analyzing 27 articles, the absence of a specific evaluation protocol for PD with STN-DBS was evident. Conclusion: non-motor symptoms are not given due importance in neuropsychological assessments. It is crucial to acknowledge that these symptoms have a major impact on the quality of life of patients. Greater engagement in assessing these aspects is required, in order to bridge the gaps in research.

Characterizing cognitive decline in older adults with MCI over time is important to identify the cognitive profile of those who convert to dementia.Objective:This study examined the two-year cognitive trajectory of elderly adults diagnosed with MCI, from geriatrics and neurology outpatient clinics of a public hospital in Rio de Janeiro.Methods:62 older adults with MCI were submitted to a neuropsychological battery and re-evaluated after two years. The Mann-Whitney U test was employed to assess differences between groups with respect to education, functioning, the Geriatric Depression Scale and diagnosis.Results:24.2% converted to dementia after two years. The group with declines in two or more cognitive functions had a higher conversion rate to dementia than the group with decline in executive functions (EF) only (Z = -2.11, p = .04). The EF decline group had higher scores on the depression scale than both the memory decline group (Z = -1.99, p = .05) and multiple decline group (Z = -2.23, p = .03).Conclusion:The present study found different cognitive decline profiles in elderly adults with MCI and differences between them regarding depressive symptoms and rate of conversion to dementia.

The impairments in cognitive functions such as memory, executive function, visuospatial skills and language in Parkinson’s disease (PD) are drawing increasing attention in the current literature. Studies dedicated to investigating the relationship between subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) and cognitive functioning are contradictory. This systematic review aims to analyze the impact on the cognitive functioning of patients with PD and STN-DBS. Articles published in the 2007-2017 period were retrieved from the Medline/Pubmed databases using PRISMA criteria. The analysis of 27 articles revealed many conflicting results, precluding a consensus on a cognitive functioning standard and hampering the establishment of a neuropsychological profile for PD patients who underwent STN-DBS surgery. Further studies investigating this relationship are needed.

Although the availability of the computer-based assessment has increased over the years, neuropsychology has not carried out a significant paradigm shift since the personal computer’s popularization in the 1980s. To keep up with the technological advances of healthcare and neuroscience in general, more efforts must be made in the field of clinical neuropsychology to develop and validate new and more technology-based instruments, especially considering new variables and paradigms when compared to paper and pencil tests. Objective: This study’s objective was to produce concurrent validity evidence of the novel version of the computerized cognitive screening battery CompCog. Methods: Participants performed a traditional paper and pencil neuropsychological testing session and another session where CompCog was administrated. The data of a total of 50 young adult college students were used in the analyses. Results: Results have shown moderate and strong correlations between CompCog’s tasks and their equivalents considering paper and pencil tests. Items clustered in agreement with the subtest division in a principal component analysis. Conclusions: The findings suggest that CompCog is valid for measuring the cognitive processes its tasks intend to evaluate.

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Deus, agradeço por me dar a oportunidade de me dedicar à pesquisa científica e ao atendimento assistencial. Sinto-me honrada em poder oferecer à população nossos achados para auxiliar os profissionais de saúde no cuidado ambulatorial e/ou clínico.Aos meus pais que apoiaram todas as minhas escolhas e estiveram ao meu lado torcendo pelo meu sucesso.Aos meus amigos que foram essenciais nos momentos de folga e descanso.Às minhas companheiras da 219: mestrandas e doutorandas, obrigada pelas conversas, almoços e trocas de mensagens -desesperadas e de conforto. Sem vocês essa jornada de 4 anos (contando apenas o doutorado) teria sido muito mais dura e difícil. Principalmente na reta final, a ajuda de vocês foi essencial para que esse trabalho fosse finalizado. Feliz por sermos um grupo que torce uma pela outra, mesmo dentro desse ambiente altamente competitivo. Que nossa amizade permaneça mesmo após cada uma seguir o seu caminho profissional.À professora Helenice Charchat Fichman, agradeço pela disponibilidade e oportunidade em me auxiliar durante esses anos no desenvolvimento desse projeto tão interessante. Participar do grupo de pesquisa e estudo em neuropsicologia clínica desde 2012 na PUC-Rio foi essencial para o meu crescimento profissional e pessoal.Ao doutor José Augusto Nasser dos Santos, que honra conhecê-lo. Obrigada por ceder seus pacientes, seu consultório e seus conselhos. Serei eternamente grata por me incentivar a levar meus achados a outros patamares... Conheci muitas cidades, pesquisas e profissionais graças aos congressos internacionais nos quais apresentei trabalho. Espero que continuemos trocando ideias, pacientes e projetos.À doutora Mariana Spitz agradeço a disponibilidade e colaboração durante todo o processo de submissão do projeto no Hospital Federal dos Servidores do Estado e na seleção dos pacientes para avaliação. Além disso, fico feliz de podermos trabalhar juntas e espero que essa parceria se perpetue por muitos anos.Aos pacientes do ambulatório de Neurologia do Hospital Federal dos Servidores do Estado e do consultório do dr José Nasser deixo o meu agradecimento por disponibilizarem seu tempo e energia para as (longas) avaliações neuropsicológicas. Muitos têm o entendimento do que é a pesquisa e, inclusive, cito um dos pacientes do ambulatório que escreveu para mim "Eu tenho a agradecer por pessoas como você se dedicar a ciência" e eu respondo devolvendo esse agradecimento aqueles que aceitaram participar e disponibilizar seus resultados à ciência.À PUC-Rio e CNPq pela estrutura e auxílios concedidos que permitiram que o projeto saísse do papel e pudesse ser realizado. À Marcelina por ser sempre atenciosa e prestativa, aos cozinheiros do bandejão por sua criatividade e cardápio vegetariano delicioso e ao RDC onde pude imprimir boa parte do material necessário para a pesquisa.