Videoconference version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment: normative data for Quebec-French people aged 50 years and older

Abstract

Background The COVID-19 pandemic forced health professionals to rapidly develop and implement telepractice and remote assessments. Recent reviews appear to confirm the validity of a wide range of neuropsychological tests for teleneuropsychology and among these, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), a cognitive screening test widely used in clinical settings. The normative data specific to the context of videoconference administration is essential, particularly that consider sociodemographic characteristics. Aims This study had for objective to develop French-Quebec normative data for videoconference-administration of the MoCA that consider sociodemographic characteristics. Methods A total of 230 community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and older taking part in clinical trials completed the MoCA by videoconference. Regression analyses were run with sex, education, and age as predictors of the total MoCA scores, based on previously published norms. As an exploratory analysis, a second regression analysis was also run with cardiovascular disease as a predictor. Results Regression analyses revealed that older age and lower education were associated with poorer total MoCA scores, for medium effect size (p < 0.001, R 2 = 0.17). Neither sex nor cardiovascular disease, were significant predictors in our analyses. For clinicians, a regression equation was proposed to calculate Z scores. Discussion This study provides normative data for the MoCA administered via videoconference in Quebec-French individuals aged 50 years and over. Conclusions The present normative data will not only allow clinicians to continue to perform assessments remotely in this pandemic period but will also allow them to perform cognitive assessments to patients located in remote areas.

Teleneuropsychology for vascular cognitive impairment: Which tools do we have?

“…In remote cognitive evaluation, the need to adapt administration modalities is the main issue in terms of reliability and validity. Furthermore, specific normative data are required to interpret tests’ results in this condition, but few efforts have been made in this direction [34] , [35] , [36] . Current recommendations are to rely on normative data obtained using the standard assessments for those cognitive tests proven to be consistent across conditions, but caution is needed in this regard.…”

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment: Normative Data from a Large, Population-Based Sample of Healthy Adults in China

“…[14-16, 18, 21, 22, 34, 36] Age and education accounted for 46.8% of the variance in MoCA raw scores, a proportion that is notably higher than the normative data reported in recent years in some other countries. [23, 24, 31, 32] This could be attributed to our substantial sample size and comprehensive representation of various age groups and education levels. [24] This study aligns with the findings of previous research, as it indicates that younger age and higher education levels are associated with higher MoCA scores.…”

“…[12,13] Over the past decade, the scale has undergone translation into multiple languages and validation in diverse populations encompassing various ages and educational backgrounds. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32] However, owing to variations in cultural and linguistic practices across different countries and regions, the performance of MoCA may exhibit variability. As a result, it is particularly important to make reasonable localization revisions to the MoCA scale and develop appropriate local normative values.…”

Mediterranean diet and time-restricted eating as a cardiac rehabilitation approach for patients with coronary heart disease and pre-diabetes: the DIABEPIC-1 protocol of a feasibility trial

“…Neuropsychological testing will be conducted in person or by videoconference; the aforementioned tests are adequate for remote administration. 5 Moreover, all tests have been validated for an adult population.…”