Correlations between neuropsychological performance and functional measures: Preliminary findings from the novel cognitive and functional measure for Alzheimer’s Disease prevention trials (NoMAD)
Year: 2021
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background Two novel measures of cognition and function, the No Practice Effects (NPE) cognitive battery and the Miami Computerized Functional Assessment Scale (CFAS), were designed to have robust psychometric properties and reduced practice and ceiling effects for use in preclinical and early‐stage Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials. In this preliminary analysis, we sought to identify different cognitive domains in the NPE and evaluate their relationships with the CFAS functional measures. Method Fifty‐one cognitively healthy older adults (mean age 69.44 ± 6.29, 65.30% female) with baseline cognitive and functional assessments were included. We conducted an exploratory factor analysis to identify different cognitive domains within the NPE. We then computed a composite score for each domain and conducted partial Spearman correlations with CFAS functional measures, controlling for age, education and gender, and intracranial volume. Result The factor analysis yielded three factors corresponding to 1) episodic memory, 2) non‐verbal executive processes and speed, and 3) verbal working memory (loadings > 0.5). Composite scores from these factors exhibited strong correlations with CFAS functional measures. In particular, a greater executive functioning and speed composite score was significantly associated with a faster completion time (rs’s ≥‐.44) and more efficient performance (rs’s ≥.37) on most CFAS functional measures (p’s<.05). Conclusion Multi‐domain factors were identified in our novel cognitive measures. These cognitive domains strongly correlated with everyday functioning measures. Our results suggest that cognitive measures, particularly processing speed and executive function measures, obtained in clinic may be related to everyday function in older adults.
Source: Alzheimer s & Dementia
DOI: 10.1002/alz.054180
Authors: Sophie A. Bell, Hyun Kim, Hannah R. Cohen, Seonjoo Lee, Andres M. Rivera, Adam M. Brickman, Philip D. Harvey, Lon S. Schneider, Marc L. Gordon, Terry E. Goldberg
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4206665839