The influence of schooling on cognitive screening test in the elderly

Abstract

IntroductionTests for screening cognitive functions are gaining importance with the increasing incidence and prevalence of demential syndromes. For our elderly population, the challenge is to develop neuropsychological tests independent from the influence of educational level.ObjectiveTo compare the influence of education on the elderly with or without cognitive decline, on the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery (BCSB).MethodsWe studied 176 elderly people: 60 with cognitive decline (aged 73.6±9.3 years and with 5.7±0.7 years of education) and 116 without cognitive impairments (aged 73.4±0.6 years and with 5.6±0.5 years of education). The BCSB was applied in all subjects. The data were submitted to descriptive statistics and analyzed by Independent Student test with 95% confidence intervals.ResultsThe data showed that the BCSB is an appropriate battery for identifying cognitive status in normal elderly individuals, as well as cognitive decline in our elderly sample. The BCSB items were not significantly influenced by schooling years, making this test favorable for different groups characterized by illiterate individuals, as well as by those with low or high levels of formal education.ConclusionThe BCSB proved to be a useful cognitive screening test for old people with or without cognitive decline independent of their educational level.

A controlled clinical trial on the effects of motor intervention on balance and cognition in institutionalized elderly patients with dementia

“…This obstacle can be attributed to two main factors: limited knowledge regarding the cortical and subcortical pathways related to cognitive functions; and the biases of the instruments with respect to semi-literate populations. 27 In other words, most instruments require a minimum of comprehension and schooling to enable evaluation of cognitive functions. For the Clock Drawing Test, for example, the individual must have previous knowledge regarding order and numerical sequencing.…”

“…The Brief Cognitive Screening Battery is influenced little by educational level as it requires no reading or writing skills. 15,16,27 Despite the potential limitations of these instruments, it is worth noting that they are recognized internationally and have shown adequate sensitivity, validity and reliability. Consequently, we opted to use the Clock Drawing Test and the Mini-Mental State Examination, together with the Brief Cognitive Screening Battery and the Verbal Semantic Fluency Test, because we believe that the influence of educational level on the results are attenuated through the multiple and paired analysis of the data.…”

Applicability of the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (Modified) in a community sample with low education level: association with an extensive neuropsychological battery

“…Santos et al, 2014) and that cognitive test performance is strongly influenced by cultural factors (e.g. Hedden et al, 2002;Park and Gutchess, 2002;Christofoletti et al, 2007;Weissberger et al, 2013), with psychological morbidity and/or mood also playing a mediator/effector role across educational groups (e.g. Austin et al, 2001;Santos et al, 2014).…”

Passive exercise in a multisensory environment in order to manage adverse effects in physically inactive patients with dementia: a randomized controlled trial

“…The fact that we did not find improved cognitive functioning in the current population after six weeks of passive exercise may be explained by Another explanation for inconclusive results in cognitive function may be the fact that quantifying cognitive function is challenging in this population. First of all because cognitive functions are complex processes and there is limited knowledge regarding the cortical and subcortical pathways related to these processes [40]. Second, in the included population many uncontrollable variables (e.g.…”

“…However, in studies that employed (multi)sensory stimulation interventions such as 'snoezelen', video or music interventions, improvements in alertness and happiness, increased social behavior, and a reduction in behavioral disturbances as well agitated behavior of patients with dementia were found [6][7][8]. Additionally, mild vibrations (30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40), as provided during WBV and TMSim + WBV, can be beneficial for physical performance and cognitive functioning. Multiple studies reported increased muscle strength, mobility, balance and lower blood pressure after WBV [9][10][11][12].…”