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Cognitive screening in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in early stages

2011; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 13; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.3109/17482968.2011.605453

1748-2968

Gianluca Floris, Giuseppe Borghero, Adriano Chiò, Liz Secchi, Antonino Cannas, Claudia Sardu, Andrea Calvo, Cristina Moglia, Maria Giovanna Marrosu,

Alzheimer's disease research and treatments

Few studies have examined the use of a short cognitive screening of ALS patients in order to establish which patients should undergo a more comprehensive neuropsychological assessment. We tested 20 patients with early ALS with four cognitive screening instruments and subsequently with an extensive neuropsychological assessment. Sixty percent of patients showed a deficit in at least two scores of tests administered, while 40% had three abnormal tests. Dysexecutive syndrome was the most common neuropsychological impairment. The Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) proved a useful indicator of the presence of cognitive dysfunction to complete neuropsychological evaluation. In conclusion, the FAB can be considered a sensitive cognitive screening tool in these patients. These data will be verified on a larger sample of patients.