Comparing the Diagnostic Value of Four Dementia Tests in the Amnestic and Healthy Elderly

Objective: This study aimed to compare the diagnostic value of 4 questionnaires for the diagnosis of neurocognitive disorders (NCDs) in the elderly. Methodology: In this project, people older than 60 years who lived in Tehran were investigated. A total of 99 literate persons were enrolled in the study, and 4 questionnaires of functional assessment staging tool (FAST), abbreviated mental test score (AMTS), mini-mental state examination (MMSE), and modified Persian test of Elderly for Assessment of Cognition and Executive function (PEACE) were completed for them. They were then referred to a neuropsychiatrist, and the status of their cognition and neurobehavior was determined. The specialists were blinded to the results of the tests. Findings: Of the 99 participants studied, 39 were healthy, 8 had mild Alzheimer’s disease, 38 had amnesic MCI, 5 had secondary dementia, and 9 had mixed vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The area under the ROC curve for distinguishing the healthy group from the rest of the population was 0.692, 0.629, 0.734, and 0.751 for the FAST, AMTS, MMSE, and NBCSS questionnaires, respectively. Conclusion: MMSE and NBCSS tests had better diagnostic power than the other two tests to distinguish the healthy group from the rest of the population.