Self and informant perception of clinical manifestations of Alzheimer dementia: results of a structured interview (CAMDEX)

Abstract

The correlations between (a) the patients' memory complaints, (b) the informants' rating of the patients' cognitive impairment, and (c) cognitive performance according to the Cambridge Examination for Mental Disorders of the Elderly (CAMDEX) were examined in 163 patients with probable or possible Alzheimer's disease. The patients' complaints were weakly correlated with informants' view (p < 0.05), closely correlated with depressive mood (p < 0.0001), but not with cognitive performance or the stage of dementia. The results of Clinical Dementia Rating, Mini-Mental State Examination and the Cambridge Cognitive Examination were significantly correlated with the informants' rating of cognitive impairment (p < 0.0001). These results are in line with previous studies and confirm (1) the suitability of CAMDEX for the structured examination of dementia patients and their caregivers, (2) the association between affective disturbances and the perception of cognitive deficits, and (3) the importance informants' rating for the valid evaluation of demented patients.