Boston Naming Test Scores Research Articles

Naming decline after left anterior temporal lobectomy correlates with pathological status of resected hippocampus.

To evaluate the determinants of postoperative change in visual confrontation naming ability and the differential sensitivity of two common tests of confrontation naming. In a group of 99 patients undergoing lobectomy of the left, language-dominant anterior temporal lobe, we examined naming ability using two measures: the 60 item Boston Naming Test (BNT), and the Visual Naming (VN) subtest of the Multilingual Aphasia Examination (MAE). ATL entailed resection of lateral temporal lobe followed by microsurgical complete removal of hippocampus. Language mapping was not performed. The status of the resected hippocampus was graded on a scale 0-4 of hippocampal sclerosis (HS). A dichotomous grouping HS- (grades 0 and 1, n = 34) and HS+ (grades 3 and 4, n = 61) was effected. Age at surgery, age of epilepsy onset, sex, extent of lateral temporal resection, Full-Scale IQ (FSIQ), and preoperative naming scores were also examined as potential predictors of pre- versus postoperative naming change. Preoperative BNT and VN scores were significantly worse for HS+ than for HS- (BNT, p < 0.05; VN, p = 0.001). Postoperatively, BNT and VN scores significantly declined for HS- as compared with HS+ patients (p < 0.001). For individual risk, the 90th centile of reliable change index (RCI) was used. By this criterion, of the total sample, 39% evidenced decline on the BNT and 17% evidenced decline on the VN. Logistic regression analysis with backward elimination showed HS to be the only predictor of decline in BNT and HS and sex to be the only predictors of VN decline. Males were more at risk than females. Age, age at onset, extent of lateral resection, preoperative scores, and FSIQ were not predictors. Using age at onset as a proxy for HS+/HS- we calculated probabilities for naming decline for given onset age. Both preoperative and postoperative change in naming ability are associated with the pathological status of the hippocampus. The potential interpretations and implications of these findings are discussed.

Stereotactic biopsy of nonpolar tumors in the dominant hemisphere: a prospective study of effects on language functions.

A prospective study of patients undergoing computerized tomography (CT)-guided stereotactic biopsy of nonpolar tumors in the dominant hemisphere was undertaken to determine if stereotactic biopsy caused a deterioration of language functions. Language was assessed using the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) and the Boston Naming Test (BNT) before and after a biopsy sample was obtained. Of 16 patients studied, five (31%) were dysphasic preoperatively. After the biopsy the Aphasia Quotient (AQ), derived from the WAB, had significantly deteriorated in four (80%) of these patients, whereas in the fifth it remained relatively unchanged. One of these patients with an extensive infiltrating hemispheric oligoastrocytoma subsequently recovered normal language function after radiotherapy. In 10 of the 11 patients who had normal language function preoperatively there were no deleterious changes after biopsy in either the WAB subtest or BNT scores. In the other patient whose WAB score was normal preoperatively, there was a significant deterioration in postoperative AQ. This patient, who declined steroid therapy before and after biopsy, had a glioblastoma multiforme in Wernicke's area. A postoperative CT scan revealed no changes from what was shown on preoperative scan. This clinical study shows that CT-guided stereotactic biopsy of nonpolar tumors in the dominant hemisphere using the Brown-Roberts-Wells system and the Sedan-Nashold biopsy cannula carries a 9% risk (95% confidence intervals 0-26%) of impairing language functions if the patient is not dysphasic preoperatively. If the patient is dysphasic preoperatively, there is a very high risk of aggravating the dysphasia with stereotactic biopsy.

Normative data for the boston naming test for Australian elderly

Abstract The Boston Naming Test (BNT) is frequently used to assess for word-retrieval difficulties, but its use outside North America is restricted by items such as ‘beaver’ and ‘pretzel’. A total of 136 older Australians were tested on the BNT. Those items which frequently produced naming errors were identified and alternative items trialled. Age, years of schooling, visual acuity and forward and backward digit span assessments were correlated with BNT scores, and errors were analysed. The mean BNT score for Australian subjects was two to five items below the reported mean scores of North American subjects. Percentages correct for ‘beaver’ and ‘pretzel’ were greater than two standard deviations below the mean BNT score, and alternative items are proposed. Age, years of schooling, visual acuity and backward digit span were all found to be significantly correlated with BNT scores, and semantically related errors were the most frequent type of error followed by ‘don't-know’ responses. This study suggests th...

Normative data on the boston naming test for elderly adults in a demographically diverse medical sample

Abstract Boston Naming Test normative data for 123 elderly adults are provided for use in urban, demographically diverse, medical settings. Study 1 examined the association between demographic variables and confrontation naming performance. Age, education, ethnicity, and gender were all found to be significant predictors of Boston Naming Test performance. The combined effects of demographic variables accounted for 21% of Boston Naming Test variance beyond that explained by general cognitive abilities. The Boston Naming Test scores obtained from this sample were much lower than those reported in previous samples (e.g., Van Gorp, Satz, Kiersch, & Henry, 1986), with much greater variance. Study 2 examined the utility of the BNT to differentiate the present normative sample from an additional sample of cognitively impaired persons. Despite substantial demographic and health status differences between the present normative sample and previous samples, the BNT discriminated cognitively intact persons from cogni...

Boston Naming Test: shortened versions for use in Alzheimer's disease.

Four new 15-item versions of the Boston Naming Test (BNT), a 15-item version used by the Consortium To Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (CERAD), and three 30-item BNT versions were studied in 26 subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 26 nondemented, neurologically normal controls. The four 15-item versions were statistically equivalent. On each version, controls performed significantly better than AD subjects, and scores on each could be extrapolated to a complete 60-item BNT score. The CERAD version also differentiated between AD and control subjects, but it was not equivalent to our four versions and could not be as easily extrapolated to a 60-item score. Even and Odd 30-item BNT versions were confirmed to be equivalent, and we further validated a 30-item Empirical Version designed to maximally discriminate between AD and normal subjects. Equivalent 15- or 30-item versions of the BNT will be useful in repeated assessments requiring independent forms of a naming task, as well as in situations where administration of the complete BNT is not practical.

A quantitative analysis of CT and cognitive measures in normal aging and Alzheimer's disease

Patients with presumptive Alzheimer's disease (AD) and healthy community volunteers received computed tomographic (CT) brain scans and cognitive tests. The CT scans were quantitatively analyzed with a semiautomated thresholding technique to derive volumetric measures of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-to-tissue ratios in six regions of interest (ROIs): lateral ventricles, vertex sulci, frontal sulci, Sylvian fissures, parieto-occipital sulci, and third ventricle. Regression analysis was performed on CT data from 85 older volunteers (ages 51–82) to generate age norms for each ROI. Within this group, tissue loss, as measured by the % CSF in each ROI, was highly correlated with age, although each ROI showed different rates of change over age. For all ROIs, the AD group had significantly more tissue loss than expected in normal aging. In addition, AD patients with a presenescent onset (before age 65) tended to have greater vertex sulcal and frontal sulcal tissue reduction than AD patients with a senescent onset (age 65 or after). When regional tissue reduction, corrected for age, was correlated with cognitive test scores, two sets of double dissociations emerged within the AD group: large CT z scores (i.e., decreased tissue and increased CSF) of frontal sulci, but not of the third ventricle, correlated with low Comprehension and Boston Naming Test scores, whereas large CT z scores of the third ventricle, but not of the frontal sulci, correlated with low scores on Digit Symbol and Picture Arrangement. These results suggest that heterogeneity of structural and functional integrity exists among patients with AD.

Performance of normal males on the Boston naming test and the word test

Abstract Responses on the Boston Naming Test (BNT) and The Word Test (TWT) were compared for 125 normal male subjects between 20 and 69 years. BNT and TWT scores were significantly correlated. Age was significantly correlated with BNT scores, but educational level was not significantly correlated with BNT or TWT scores. Examples of incorrect responses on both tests are provided, and clinical implications are discussed.

Performance of closed head-injured children on a naming task

The naming abilities of a group of 20 children (aged 8-16) who had sustained a closed head injury (CHI) at least 12 months previously were assessed with the purpose of examining the long-term effect of CHI on children's naming ability. Performance of the CHI group on the Boston Naming Test was compared to that of a group of non-neurologically impaired accident victims matched for age, sex and socioeconomic status. A detailed examination of the types of naming errors exhibited by the CHI children was also carried out. Boston Naming Test scores of the CHI group were found to be significantly lower than those achieved by the control group. The error pattern demonstrated by the CHI group, however, mimicked that of the control group.

Revised administration and scoring procedures for the Boston Naming test and norms for non-brain-damaged adults

Abstract Standard administration, response coding and scoring procedures were developed for the 60-item Boston Naming Test (BNT). Standard prompts to be given following certain types of incorrect responses were also developed. The BNT was administered to 60 non-brain-damaged adults using these standard procedures. Our results show that examiners can reliably carry out the revised test procedures reported in this paper. Our results also show that two response categories (Related Name and Don't Know) accounted for nearly 80% of incorrect responses. Several BNT test pictures frequently elicited a consistent name other than the one specified in the test. Prompting for an additional response following Related Name and Multiple Attempts responses frequently elicited the correct BNT name. Prompts following other types of error responses usually did not elicit the correct name. Neither the age nor education of our nonbrain-damaged subjects was strongly related to their total BNT score.

Comparison of different versions of the Boston naming test

Abstract This study compared a series of 49 clinical patients' performance on the different versions of the Boston Naming Test (BNT). Specifically, items were scored according to the criteria for the 85-item experimental version, for the 60-item published version, and for two 42-item short forms developed for test-retest purposes. Pearson correlations revealed high correlations among the different versions, and between BNT scores and other language measures such as WAIS-R Verbal IQ and the WAIS-R Vocabulary subtest score. Education correlated more highly with the BNT scores than did age. Comparisons of the 85- and 60-item versions revealed significant differences between the percentage correct, and that currently published norms for the 60-item version are more likely to classify a subject's score as impaired. Finally, the two short forms were found to be very similar.

Boston naming test in Alzheimer's disease

The 60-item Boston Naming Test (BNT) was administered to 55 subjects: 15 mildly-to-moderately demented patients meeting NINCDS-ADRDA criteria for “probable” Alzheimer's disease (AD), 15 age-equivalent normal control (NC) subjects, and—for purposes of validation—25 additional subjects with other forms of dementia (OD). A cutting score of 51 correctly classified 80% of AD patients and 86% of NC subjects. To facilitate rapid screening of confrontation-naming performance in these populations, three 30-item shortened versions of the BNT were constructed. Even and Odd Versions were equivalent for AD, NC, and OD subjects; high correlations between these two and the 60-item BNT permit easy extrapolation to a total BNT score. A new Empirical Version, derived from performance of our AD and NC reference groups, maintained most of the intergroup discrimination of the full BNT.

Equivalent forms of the Boston Naming Test.

In order to develop a test of naming ability that is sensitive to changes in performance on repeated testing, but is unbiased by practice effects, the 85 items of the Boston Naming Test (BNT) were divided into two 42-item forms. Both forms were given to 15 healthy adult subjects, 24 patients with a clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, and 17 patients with other brain lesions. The reliability of the BNT was high as measured by coefficient alpha and interitem correlations. Performance on the two forms of the test was similar as indicated by mean scores and by correlations between scores. The BNT score includes uncued (spontaneous) and cued responses. When uncued responses were analyzed separately, the reliability and equivalence of the forms remained strong. Using uncued scores therefore does not alter the psychometric properties of the test, and considerably reduces administration time. The modification of the BNT described here should be useful in studies in which repeated measurements are obtained for the purpose of detecting changes in naming ability.