Search

The Toulouse-Piéron Cancelation Test (TP) is a classic psychometric tool for the assessment of selective/sustained attention, processing speed and visuo-perceptual abilities. It is commonly used in neurological disorders such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis or Alzheimer's disease. It encompasses two main indexes: Work-Efficiency (WE) and Dispersion-Index (DI). The aim of this study is to provide normative scores for the TP in a sample of Portuguese healthy adults. The TP was administered to a convenience sample of 357 cognitively-dwelling subjects aged between [45 and 86] years old, following a standard assessment protocol. The normative scores were adjusted for age and education. Education was the main predictor of TP-WE (R2 =.310), whereas the influence of age on this score was lower (R2 =.191). These two variables explained 50.1% of the variance of the results. Regarding TP-DI, education was also the main predictor of the results (R2 =.039), whereas age was responsible for R2 =.011 and together, they explained 5% of the variance of TP-DI. TP performances are strongly influenced by age and education. This is the first study focused on the establishment of normative data after the age of 45 in the Portuguese population, allowing a reliable assessment in both clinical and research contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The CDR Dementia Staging Instrument PLUS National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (CDR plus NACC FTLD) was developed by adding to the standard CDR two extra domains focused on the main features of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD): language and behavior/personality. We intended to perform the validation studies for the European‐Portuguese population. Methods: A total of 105 participants matched for age, education, and disease staging (35 bvFTD, 35 AD, and 35 controls) were included. A translated‐version of the CDR and the two added domains was administered by a neuropsychologist who was blinded to the diagnosis. Results: The bvFTD group had higher baseline CDR plus NACC FTLD scores compared to the AD and controls. Only the sum‐of‐boxes (SB) score, the behavior/personality, and language domains were able to distinguish between clinical groups. Logistic regression analyses showed that adding the behavior/personality domain with or without language significantly enhanced the discriminating ability. Discussion: Results show that the CDR plus NACC FTLD is a reliable tool in the diagnostic process of bvFTD patients and has an added value in distinguishing them from patients with AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of European Review of Applied Psychology is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)