An investigation into the utility of the Mini Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (M-ACE) for the early detection of dementia and mild cognitive impairment in people aged 75 and over

McGuire, Claire (2016) An investigation into the utility of the Mini Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (M-ACE) for the early detection of dementia and mild cognitive impairment in people aged 75 and over. D Clin Psy thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

Background/Aims: The Mini Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination (M-ACE) is the abbreviated version of the widely-used Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination (ACE-III), a cognitive screening tool that is used internationally in the assessment of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia. The objectives of this study were to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of the M-ACE with individuals aged 75 and over to distinguish between those who do and do not have a dementia or MCI, and also to establish whether the cut-off scores recommended by Hsieh et al. (2014) [9] in the original validation study for the M-ACE are optimal for this age group. Methods: The M-ACE was administered to 58 participants (24 with a diagnosis of dementia, 17 with a diagnosis of MCI and 17 healthy controls). The extent to which scores distinguished between groups (dementia, MCI or no diagnosis) was explored using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Results: The optimal cut-off for detecting dementia was ≤ 21/30 (score ≤ 21/30 indicating dementia with a sensitivity of 0.95, a specificity of 1 and a positive predictive value of 1) compared to the original higher published cut-off of ≤ 25/30 (sensitivity of 0.95, specificity of 0.70 and a positive predictive value of 0.82 in this sample). Conclusions: The M-ACE has excellent diagnostic accuracy for the detection of dementia in a UK clinical sample. It may be necessary to consider lower cut-offs than those given in the original validation study.

• Item Type: Thesis (D Clin Psy)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Keywords: Mini Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination, cognitive assessment, diagnosis, dementia, mild cognitive impairment.
• Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
• Colleges/Schools: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > Mental Health and Wellbeing
• Supervisor's Name: Evans, Professor Jon
• Date of Award: 2016
• Depositing User: Ms Claire McGuire
• Unique ID: glathesis:2016-7746
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 07 Nov 2016 14:52
• Last Modified: 11 Nov 2016 16:42
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/7746