Application of the Rey-Osterrieth complex figure test for assessment of cognitive impairment in multiple sclerosis

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Cognitive impairment is frequent in multiple sclerosis and predominantly affects visuospatial abilities, memory, attention, and executive functions. Because of the specific cognitive profile, different from that in Alzheimer's disease and other frequent disorders presenting with dementia, specific neuropsychological instruments need to be used in multiple sclerosis. The aim of the present study is to assess the applicability of the Rey-Osterrieth complex figure test (ROCFT) for assessing cognitive impairment in patients with multiple sclerosis in comparison with a control group. MATERIAL AND METHODS: One hundred and two individuals, 70 patients with MS and 32 healthy control subjects were assessed using ROCFT. A standardized system for assessment by points and percentages was used. The results from both groups were compared statistically using independent samples t-test. RESULTS: On the copying task, the differences between patients and controls reached statistical significance, p<0.05 for the raw score, and p<0.001 after results were grouped by percentiles. On the drawing by memory task the differences between the two groups also showed statistical significance, p<0.01. CONCLUSION: ROCFT shows statistically significant differences between patients with multiple sclerosis and healthy subjects. Highest levels of significance were observed for copying, scored by percentiles, and for drawing by memory. The application of ROCFT can provide valuable information about cognitive dysfunction in multiple sclerosis.

A Study of the Cognitive Profile of Children and Its Relationship With Academic Performance

“…The Rey-Osterrieth complex figure test was first developed by Andre Rey in 1941 and then standardized by Paul-Alex Osterrieth in 1944 (Dimitrov et al, 2015). This test assesses visuospatial abilities, attention, and executive function (Dimitrov et al, 2015), perceptual organization (Fastenau, Denburg, & Hufford, 1999), visuoconstructional abilities (Frank & Landeira-Fernandez, 2008) and visual and nonverbal memory (Dimitrov et al, 2015; Fastenau et al, 1999; Frank & Landeira-Fernandez, 2008). It consists of two parts.…”

“…The first part assesses the perceptual organization and the second part measures visual memory. To administer the Rey-Osterrieth complex figure test, participants are asked to reproduce a complex figure (containing 18 components) on a sheet as accurately as possible (Dimitrov et al, 2015; Fastenau et al, 1999; Frank & Landeira-Fernandez, 2008). After 30 minutes, they are instructed to draw what they recall on a sheet (Dimitrov et al, 2015; Fastenau et al, 1999; Frank & Landeira-Fernandez, 2008).…”

Development of an eye-tracking system based on a deep learning model to assess executive function in patients with mental illnesses

“…These results indicate that eye movements during the encoding of highly complex gures re ect executive function during visuospatial memory encoding, serving as a biomarker of impairment. Additionally, as the assessment model in this study utilized a data-driven deep learning technique that does not require handcrafted feature selection based on speci c disease hypotheses, it has the potential to extend beyond early psychosis and OCD to other psychiatric and neurological disorders that also exhibit impaired executive function, poor performance in the RCFT in the form of disorganized and fragmented drawings, and di culties in visuospatial integration [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] .…”

“…Both patient groups commonly exhibit signi cantly lower RCFT immediate recall scores and organization scores than healthy controls (HCs), stemming from executive function de cits during visuospatial memory encoding 3,5,7 . These cognitive de cits are also often observed in patients with various psychiatric and neurological disorders, such as bipolar disorder, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, closed head injury, autism, epilepsy, encephalitis, multiple sclerosis, and ischemic stroke, who exhibit brain dysfunctions [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] .…”

Predicting clinical progression and cognitive decline in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: a 6-year follow-up study

“…The only test where patients deteriorated on FU was the ROCF test, which assesses visuospatial abilities, memory, attention, and executive functions [18]. Patients with MS generally perform worse in the ROCF test than healthy controls, and the results are correlated with grey matter and deep grey matter volume [18]. To date, no other studies concerning longitudinal ROCF scores in the MS population have been published.…”