Characteristics of assessment of motor and process skills and Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test in elderly women with dementia and community-dwelling women.

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the characteristics of the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) ability, evaluated by the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), and everyday memory functions (the memory necessary for daily life), assessed by the Rivermead Behavioral Memory Test (RBMT) in elderly people with dementia compared with a community-dwelling group. We divided the RBMT into three categories: prospective memory (PM), retrospective memory (RM), and PM+RM. The study was performed with 102 women, those with dementia who lived in a healthcare facility or three group homes (n = 52) and those who were cognitively well and lived in their own homes (n = 50). Subjects were over 68 and under 92 years old. We assessed them by Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), AMPS and RBMT. The results of the MMSE, AMPS, and RBMT revealed that the community-dwelling group's averages were higher than those of the Dementia group. No associations were found between AMPS motor skills and MMSE or PM, RM, and PM+RM in both groups. There were slight associations between the AMPS process and RM in both groups, but none between AMPS process skills and PM in either group. From that result, we found that IADL performance ability and everyday memory were not simultaneously damaged. Moreover, analyzing a scatter chart revealed some subjects had a PM deficit even though they were at the IADL independent level. In conclusion, occupational therapists need to assess both IADL performance and everyday memory, including PM, in elderly people.