Abstract
One current challenge for neuropsychologists is to design assessment methods capable of detecting cognitive deficits in the early or preclinical phases of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The objective of this paper is to review the studies that have explored the use of the Face-Name Associative Memory Exam (FNAME) as a test for early diagnosis of AD. Studies looking at correlations between performance on the FNAME test and biomarkers in healthy people and studies comparing healthy controls and people with mild cognitive impairment are reviewed. These studies are based on the evidence that AD’s pathological process begins years before the most visible clinical manifestations. We conclude that the FNAME test may be a valuable tool for early diagnosis but that some important questions remain to be resolved in future research.
Highlights
Aging involves brain and functional changes, and it is common to talk about a continuum from normal aging to Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
We review recent neuropsychological work on a type of memory that might be especially sensitive to age and cognitive decline and fit the requisites to be a useful test for early diagnosis: associative memory
The results showed that performance on the Face-Name Associative Memory Exam (FNAME) correlated with amyloid load in cortical regions of the brain related to memory systems such as the frontal cortex, posterior precuneus, posterior cingulate, and lateral parietal
Summary
The objective of this paper is to review the studies that have explored the use of the Face-Name Associative Memory Exam (FNAME) as a test for early diagnosis of AD. Studies looking at correlations between performance on the FNAME test and biomarkers in healthy people and studies comparing healthy controls and people with mild cognitive impairment are reviewed. These studies are based on the evidence that AD’s pathological process begins years before the most visible clinical manifestations. We conclude that the FNAME test may be a valuable tool for early diagnosis but that some important questions remain to be resolved in future research
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