Changes in the Rhythm of Speech Difference between People with Nondegenerative Mild Cognitive Impairment and with Preclinical Dementia.

Juan J G Meilán,Thide E Llorente,Israel Martínez-Nicolás,Francisco Martínez-Sánchez,Juan Carro

doi:10.1155/2020/4683573

Abstract

This study explores several speech parameters related to mild cognitive impairment, as well as those that might be flagging the presence of an underlying neurodegenerative process. Speech is an excellent biomarker because it is not invasive and, what is more, its analysis is rapid and economical. Our aim has been to ascertain whether the typical speech patterns of people with Alzheimer's disease are also present during the disorder's preclinical stages. To do so, we shall be using a task that involves reading out aloud. This is followed by an analysis of the recordings, looking for the possible parameters differentiating between those older people with MCI and a high probability of developing dementia and those with MCI that will not do so. We found that the disease's most differentiating parameters prior to its onset involve changes in speech duration and an alteration in rhythm rate and intensity. These parameters seem to be related to the first difficulties in lexical access among older people with AD.

Highlights

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a nondegenerative heterogeneous prodrome involving mild cognitive declines in short-term memory processes, as well as deficits in attention or in access to words
This study has once again revealed the difficulties involved in the use of neuropsychological tests for the presymptomatic diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), given that screening tests do not show significant differences in the various scales between those individuals with a speech phonotype close to AD and those without those speech characteristics
In both groups, when the elders request a cognitive assessment, they score an average of 23/24 points in the MMSE, which places them in the MCI group

Summary

Introduction

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a nondegenerative heterogeneous prodrome involving mild cognitive declines in short-term memory processes, as well as deficits in attention or in access to words. MCI tend to go undiagnosed, given the financial and personal cost of conducting biomarker tests. Such declines are typically attributed to normal aging, even though some of them may be masking a preclinical stage of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) rather than an MCI. This fact tends to be ignored, as only 15-20% of people with MCI subsequently develop AD [2]. Their early diagnosis is important because it will enable families to plan their future, involve patients in the control of risk factors, promote research into the disease, provide the appropriate care, foresee new symptoms, and arrange treatment that is more effective the sooner it is given

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