Abstract
BackgroundThe high illiteracy rates in the North African and Middle Eastern region make direct cognitive testing challenging. Validated instruments for dementia in Arabic language are lacking specially those targeting low-educated subjects.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to develop a cognitive evaluation battery suitable for both educated and illiterate Egyptian elderly people.DesignA cross-sectional study was conducted. Setting: Ain-Shams University geriatric and ophthalmology wards, geriatrics outpatient clinic, and geriatric clubs. Participants: 159 male and female participants aged ≥ 60 years were recruited.MeasurementsCut-off points were determined according to DSM-IV criteria for dementia and MMSE scores which divided the participants into 3 quadrants as normal, having mild cognitive impairment and having dementia then application of the new battery test was done.ResultsTest re-test reliability ranged from adequate to high in most of its tests with r ≥ 0.7. There was a statistical significance between all battery tests when divided into normal and dementia according to DSM IV criteria except in digit span forward length, digit span backward length, stimulus cue of confrontation naming and judgment. Means and standard deviations were calculated for each battery subset, for the whole sample, for low-educated group and group with > 9 years education according to three quadrants of MMSE.ConclusionA new valid and reliable neurocognitive evaluation battery that can differentiate between normal, mild cognitive impairment, and dementia in both educated and illiterate subjects under the name of Ain Shams Cognitive Assessment (ASCA) scale is now available.
Highlights
The word cognition comes from the Latin verb cognosco, which means to conceptualize or to recognize [1].Cognitive decline is a normal process of aging [2]
There was a statistical significance between all battery tests when divided into normal and dementia according to DSM IV criteria except in digit span forward length, digit span backward length, stimulus cue of confrontation naming and judgment
Means and standard deviations were calculated for each battery subset, for the whole sample, for low-educated group and group with > 9 years education according to three quadrants of Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE)
Summary
Cognitive decline is a normal process of aging [2]. There is a significant heterogeneity among older adults in the rate of decline in those abilities [4]. With aging of the population, dementia became a public health problem increasing health care costs. It affects about 5–10% of elderly population above the age of 65 with doubling prevalence each 5 years till reaching about 50% at the age of 85 [5, 6]. The high illiteracy rates in the North African and Middle Eastern region make direct cognitive testing challenging. Validated instruments for dementia in Arabic language are lacking specially those targeting loweducated subjects
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