Review of Normative Data For Common Screening Measures Used to Evaluate Cognitive Functioning in Elderly Individuals

Abstract

When conducting neuropsychological evaluations of the elderly, it is important to compare patients' test scores to appropriate normative data to maximize diagnostic and descriptive accuracy. Many sets of normative data are now available for screening measures that assess cognitive functioning in the elderly. This article systematically reviewed available norms for 6 widely used screening measures of cognitive functioning in elderly patients. Details regarding the sample characteristics and data collection methods are provided for each set of norms, thereby providing a useful reference for clinicians.

Keywords:

• Cognition
• Elderly
• Neuropsychological assessment
• Norms

Notes

AA = African American. AD = Alzheimer's disease. C = Caucasian. H = Hispanic. HS = high-school education. NA = Data not available. VaD = vascular dementia.

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b Demographic data for non-demented and probable AD groups combined.

^c 18% of the sample completed the French version.

AA = African American. C = Caucasian. HS = high school education

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b A small percentage of the sample completed the French version

AA = African American. AD = Alzheimer's disease. C = Caucasian. H = Hispanic. HS = high school education. NA = Data not available. VaD = vascular dementia.

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b Demographic data available for only 20 of the 30 patients included in the normative sample.

AA = African American. C = Caucasian. H = Hispanic. NA = Data not available. VaD = vascular dementia.

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b The racial composition refers to all patient groups in the sample.

AA = African American. AD = Alzheimer's disease. C = Caucasian. H = Hispanic. HS = high-school education. A-MCI = Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment.

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b Demographic information is based on the 332 patients with CDR scores of 1 and 2, as well as 22 patients with other CDR scores, who are not included in the normative data.

^c Stratified only for education level ≥ 12.

^d Stratified on Word List subtest only.

^e See text for calculation of total score.

AA = African American. C = Caucasian. H = Hispanic. HS = high-school education. NAT = Native American.

^a Age and education data are reported in means and standard deviations unless otherwise noted.

^b Normative data are based on modified scoring criteria for the Figure Copy and Figure Recall subtests, and there is overlap among the participants in Patton et al. (2003), Duff et al. (2003), and Gontkovsky et al. (2002).

^c Age stratified scores are provided only for the Delayed Memory Index.

First published online: August 30, 2007.