Ricardo F. Allegri

Spanish boston naming test norms

Abstract The Spanish version of the Boston Naming Test (BNT) has enjoyed widespread use in many clinical and research studies since its introduction. However, there are no normative data available for this test, and the original English language order of presentation is maintained. The purpose of this study was to collect normative information in Buenos Aires and to evaluate age and education effects for the BNT. We studied 200 independent healthy controls between 30 and 82 years of age. No subjects had any history of neurological or psychiatric disorders or alcohol abuse. Neuropsychological evaluation included the Mini-Mental State Examination, Signoret Memory Battery, Serial Frontal Test, Phonologic and Semantic Fluency Test, and Hamilton Depression Scale. The Spanish version of the Boston Naming Test was administered according to the standard protocol. We observed that naming abilities remain generally intact throughout advancing age. Results on the BNT were significantly correlated with education (p<....

Economic impact of dementia in developing countries: an evaluation of costs of Alzheimer-type dementia in Argentina

BACKGROUND There is no previous information about economic costs of Alzheimers disease (AD) in South America. The objective of this study was to evaluate the costs of AD in Argentina. METHODS Eighty community-dwelling patients, 20 institutionalized AD patients and their respective primary caregivers, and 25 healthy elderly subjects participated in this study. The cognitive and neuropsychiatric impairments and severity of dementia were assessed with the Mini-mental State Examination, Neuropsychiatric Inventory and Clinical Dementia Rating, respectively. A structured interview about health and health-care resources used during the past 3 months was administered to family caregivers. The time devoted by carers to looking after the patients and the caregiver burden (Zarits Burden Interview) were recorded. RESULTS The annual direct costs of the disease increased with cognitive deterioration from US

Cognitive, functional and behavioral factors associated with the burden of caring for geriatric patients with cognitive impairment or depression: evidence from a South American sample

3420.40 in mild to US

Mild cognitive impairment: Believe it or not?

9657.60 in severe AD, and with institutionalization (US

Late- versus early-onset geriatric depression in a memory research center.

3189.20 outpatient vs. US

Clinical and economic characteristics associated with direct costs of Alzheimer's, frontotemporal and vascular dementia in Argentina.

14,447.68 institutionalized). Most direct costs were paid for by the family. CONCLUSIONS With the projected increase in the number of persons at risk for developing AD in emerging countries, the family cost of the disease will be significant. Dementia costs should be a matter of analysis when health policies are being designed in developing countries.

Verbal Fluency in Spanish-Speaking Children: Analysis Model According to Task Type, Clustering, and Switching Strategies and Performance Over Time

To examine behavioral, cognitive and functional factors associated with psychosocial burden in caregivers of geriatric patients.

Validity and Reliability of the SF-36 Administered to Caregivers of Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease: Evidence from a South American Sample

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was previously defined as a transitional state that can precede dementia, but the condition and the rates of conversion remain controversial. MCI is now the focus of natural history studies, along with Alzheimers disease (AD) prevention. The objective of our review will be to consider the question of whether MCI is a well enough established entity that it can be a diagnosis in medical practice and a valid target of Alzheimers prevention therapy. MCI was originally defined by Petersen et al. (31) as progressive memory loss, prodrome of Alzheimers disease. More recently MCI has been expanded to other cognitive domains with other potential causes like normal aging, fronto-temporal dementia, and vascular dementia. Despite many consensus conferences, experts cannot agree on critical aspects of the MCI, particularly with respect to its clinical utility. Based on neuropsychological studies, a hippocampal memory profile has been proposed for MCI as prodromal AD. Further research is needed to advance these criteria. We have no doubt, however, that in the future, the diagnosis of AD as disease (not only a dementia syndrome) will be made in the early pre-dementia stage and will be drawn from a combination of neuropsychological, neuro-imaging and CSF biomarkers.

Theory of mind and central coherence in eating disorders: Two sides of the same coin?

OBJECTIVE To contrast early-onset (<60 years) and late-onset (>60 years) depression in geriatric patients by evaluating differences in cognition, vascular comorbidity and sociological risk factors. Both patient groups were compared with normal subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS We recruited 76 patients with depressive symptoms (37 late onset and 39 early onset) and 17 normal controls matched by age and educational level. All subjects were assessed using a semistructured neuropsychiatric interview and an extensive neuropsychological battery. Vascular and sociological risk factors were also evaluated. RESULTS We found a significant variation in performance between depressive patients and normal controls in most cognitive functions, especially memory (P < 0.0001), semantic fluency (P < 0.0001), verbal fluency, and digit-symbol (P < 0.0001). Late-onset depression patients scored lower and exhibited more severe impairment in memory domains than early-onset depression patients (P < 0.05). Cholesterol levels and marital status were significantly (P < 0.05) different between the depressive groups. Both depressed groups (early- and late-onset) were more inactive than controls (P < 0.05; odds ratio: 6.02). CONCLUSION Geriatric depression may be a manifestation of brain degeneration, and the initial symptom of a dementia. It is important to consider this in the treatment of patients that exhibit late-onset depressive symptoms.

Role of cognitive reserve in progression from mild cognitive impairment to dementia

BACKGROUND The economic cost of dementia is high and can be predicted by cognitive and neuropsychiatric profiles. The differential costs of the various subtypes of dementia are unknown in Argentina, and this study therefore aimed to compare these costs. METHODS Patients with a diagnosis of dementia of Alzheimer-type (DAT), frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and vascular dementia (VaD), and their primary caregivers, were evaluated between 2002 and 2008. RESULTS 104 patients with dementia (DAT = 44, FTD = 34, VaD = 26) were screened and matched by age and educational level with 29 healthy subjects. Demographic variables showed no significant differences among dementia patients. The annual direct costs were US