Automated Neuropsychological Test Battery (CANTAB) in mild cognitive impairment and in Alzheimer's disease

Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2007 Apr 13;31(3):746-51. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2007.01.011. Epub 2007 Jan 16.

Abstract

Neuropsychological deficits, such as poor episodic memory, are consistent features of mild cognitive impairment and also that of early stage of dementia. The aim of the present study was to detect cognitive dysfunction among patients with Alzheimer's disease or with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which refers to a transitional state between the cognition of normal aeging and mild dementia regarded as a high-risk condition for the development of clinically probable Alzheimer's disease (AD). Computerized tests of memory, attention and executive functions were studied in groups of AD subjects (n=15) and MCI subjects (n=25). On all measures, the performance of the AD group was significantly weaker compared to healthy individuals or to the MCI group. The performance of both the AD and MCI patients in the Paired Associate Learning test was significantly impaired, which may suggest that MCI patients are already in the early stages of the disease.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Alzheimer Disease / complications*
  • Cognition Disorders / etiology*
  • Cognition Disorders / psychology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Memory, Short-Term
  • Middle Aged
  • Neuropsychological Tests*
  • Numerical Analysis, Computer-Assisted*
  • Reaction Time
  • Space Perception