title: Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test is superior to the Wechsler Memory Scale in discriminating mild cognitive impairment from Alzheimer's disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The Logical Memory (LM) and the Verbal Paired Associative Learning (VPAL) are subtests from the Wechsler Memory Scale commonly used to characterize the memory deficit of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). The Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT) was suggested to assess the memory impairment of AD spectrum patients by the International Working Group on AD. In the present study, we compared the properties of the tests and their accuracy in classifying aMCI and AD.
  
  
  METHODS
  A group of aMCI patients (n = 85) and AD patients (n = 43) were included. The reliability and the validity of the three tests were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  AD patients showed a significant pattern of worse impairment on all tests than aMCI. The FCSRT was able to classify more patients as having memory impairment in the aMCI group rather than the WMS subtests. The FCSRT proved to be good in discriminating the two groups in both lower and higher educational levels, whereas the LM was more useful in higher educated patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the instruments had good results, the FCSRT was more accurate in discriminating MCI from AD, and less influenced by the educational level.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.|Visual Neuroscience Laboratory, Institute of Biomedical Research in Light and Image, Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lemos
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Catarina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.affiliation: Psychology and Health Research Unit (UIPES) & Department of Psychological Sciences, Superior Institute of Applied Psychology (ISPA), Lisboa, Portugal.
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marôco
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Afonso
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Mário R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Simões
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.|Neurology Department of the Coimbra Hospital and University Center, Coimbra, Portugal.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Santana
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D019540:Area Under Curve; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003463:Cues; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011174:Portugal; D011594:Psychometrics; D017010:Reminder Systems; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014888:Wechsler Scales
keywords: Alzheimer's disease; Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test; Wechsler Memory Scale; mild cognitive impairment