Objective: To describe the neuropsychological profile of mild cognitive impairment subtypes (amnestic, non-amnestic and multiple-domain

The Brazilian version of the SKT maintains its original psychometric properties and displays significant correlation with previously validated screening tools for dementia. Like other dementia screening tests, the SKT is subject to educational bias.

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Education significantly impacts cognitive performance of older adults even in the absence of dementia. Some cognitive tests seem less vulnerable to the influence of education and thus may be more suitable for cognitive assessment of older adults with heterogeneous backgrounds. The objective of this study was to investigate which tests in a cognitive battery were less influenced by educational levels in a sample of cognitively unimpaired older Brazilians. In addition, we evaluated the impact of very high educational levels on cognitive performance. The cognitive battery consisted of the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Cambridge Cognitive Test (CAMCOG), Clock Drawing Test, Short Cognitive Performance Test (SKT), Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test (RBMT), Fuld Object Memory Evaluation (FOME), Verbal Fluency Test (VF) fruit category, Trail Making Test A and B, WAIS-R Vocabulary, and Block Design. Education did not exert a significant influence on the RBMT, FOME, and VF (p < .05). Subjects with very high educational levels had similar performance on the latter tests when compared with those with intermediate and low levels of education. In conclusion, the RBMT, FOME, and VF fruit category seem to be appropriate tools for the assessment of cognitive function in elderly Brazilians with varying degrees of educational attainment.

The Brazilian version of the RBMT seems to be an appropriate instrument to identify memory decline in Brazilian older adults.

The "Short Cognitive Performance Test" (Syndrom Kurztest, SKT) is a cognitive screening battery designed to detect memory and attention deficits. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the SKT as a screening tool for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. A total of 46 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), 82 with MCI, and 56 healthy controls were included in the study. Patients and controls were allocated into two groups according to educational level (< or =8 years or >8 years). ROC analyses suggested that the SKT adequately discriminates AD from non-demented subjects (MCI and controls), irrespective of the education group. The test had good sensitivity to discriminate MCI from unimpaired controls in the sub-sample of individuals with more than 8 years of schooling. Our findings suggest that the SKT is a good screening test for cognitive impairment and dementia. However, test results must be interpreted with caution when administered to less-educated individuals.

The authors regret an error they made in the Results section of the Abstract. The sentence beginning "MANCOVAS indicated that securely attached individuals score higher than fearfully attached indivduals" should read: "MANCOVAS indicated that securely attached individuals score lower than fearfully attached indivduals."

No abstract