A Potential Screening Tool for Pre-Mild Cognitive Impairment

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can predict progression to dementia owing to Alzheimer disease (AD) and is diagnosed by clinical history and impairment in at least one cognitive domain on neuropsychological testing. Another clinical category, dubbed PreMCI, has been proposed to classify individuals with features of MCI on clinical history from patient and collateral informants but without neuropsychological deficits. PreMCI is associated with neuropathologic and imaging features consistent with AD and accelerated rates of progression to MCI and AD, but a slower rate of progression to AD than MCI. To date, no easily administered screening tool exists for PreMCI.

The current researchers assessed a somewhat novel cognitive test (LASSI-L) in 49 …