Memory complaints in healthy young and elderly adults: Reliability of memory reporting

Abstract

The relationship between memory complaints and objective memory performance remains poorly understood, particularly in young and middle aged people. We studied the relationship between reports of memory complaints and objective memory performance, and the possibility of differentiating good and poor reporters across the lifespan based on concordance between reported abilities and objectively assessed performance. This cross-sectional study enrolled 292 healthy individuals, aged 18 to 87 years, able to perform common activities of daily living and without neurological or psychiatric conditions or systemic diseases likely to interfere with cognition. No correlation between memory complaints, as assessed by the Subjective Memory Complaints scale (SMC) score and the objective memory performance, evaluated by the long-delay free recall (LDFR) score of the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT), was found, even when grouping the participants by decade. The SMC score was influenced by the presence of depressive symptoms. Participants who were more educated, female and younger tended to have a higher CVLT-LDFR score. Younger subjects were more likely to have good memory performance and report few memory complaints than older subjects. In conclusion, there are differences in the reliability of memory reporting across the lifespan, younger subjects being more likely to correctly report good memory than older subjects.

Macular Thickness in Subjective Memory Complaints and Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Non-Invasive Biomarker

“…10 For this reason, in the last few years, all of these symptoms are classified under a same syndrome, subjective memory complaints (SMC). There is a general agreement in the fact that SMC increase with age 11 and they are even related to the first symptoms of dementia. 12 The main difference between MCI, mainly of amnesic kind, and SMC can be found in who determines the memory loss.…”

As queixas subjetivas de memória num cuidado de saúde primário: Um estudo follow up

“…Como demonstrado na literatura, as QSM são frequentes no contexto de saúde primário (Eichler et al, 2015;Galvin & Sadowsky, 2012;Iliffe et al, 2002) e poderão corresponder a uma fase pré-demencial (Blackburn et al, 2014;Howieson et al, 2015;Jessen et al, 2014;Mendonça et al, 2016;Mitchell et al, 2014;Verdelho et al, 2011;Wolfsgruber et al, 2014), mas também podem estar associadas à redução da saúde mental e da qualidade de vida, como à idade, à depressão, à ansiedade e ao género feminino (Açikgöz et al, 2014;Blackburn et al, 2014;Chen et al, 2014;Mendes et al, 2008;Sousa et al, 2015a). Na mesma linha das QSM anteriormente descrita, observou-se o incremento estatisticamente significativo da depressão e da ansiedade, bem como associações entre as QSM e a depressão.…”

“…Essas queixas são expressas por pessoas adultas com 55 ou mais anos, embora sejam particularmente comuns em pessoas idosas (Açikgöz et al, 2014;Eichler et al, 2015;Galvin & Sadowsky, 2012;Ginó et al, 2010;Iliffe et al, 2002;Mendes et al, 2008;Mendonça, Alves, & Bugalho, 2016;Pais, 2008;Pires et al, 2012).…”

“…Todavia, outros estudos apontam no sentido contrário, sublinhado que as QSM não predizem a futura progressão para demência (Silva et al, 2014), mas relacionam-se com a idade, a depressão, a ansiedade, o género feminino, a baixa escolaridade e a personalidade (Açikgöz et al, 2014;Blackburn et al, 2014;Mendes et al, 2008;Sousa, Pereira, & Costa, 2015a). Outros fatores de risco estão também associados ao desenvolvimento da demência, nomeadamente, a hipertensão, a diabetes (como a Hemoglobina glicosilada (HbA1c)), o colesterol e a obesidade (Claassen, 2015;Gao, Matthews, Sargeant, Brayne, & MRC FAS, 2008;Roriz-Filho et al, 2009).…”

“…Da revisão da literatura evidenciam-se os reduzidos estudos portugueses que procuram avaliar as QSM numa população idosa (Ginó et al, 2010;Mendes et al, 2008;Pires et al, 2012) e desconhecem-se estudos desta temática nos cuidados de saúde primários. O presente estudo procurou colmatar essa lacuna e avaliar longitudinalmente adultos e adultos idosos com 55 ou mais anos, referenciados nos cuidados de saúde primários por relatarem queixas de memória.…”