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Aiello EN, Mameli F, Ruggiero F, Zirone E, Zago S, Piacentini S, Poletti B, Reitano MR, Santangelo G, Ticozzi N, Silani V, Priori A, Ferrucci R. Psychometrics and diagnostics of the Italian version of the Alternate Verbal Fluency Battery (AVFB) in non-demented Parkinson's disease patients. Neurol Sci 2024:10.1007/s10072-024-07436-5. [PMID: 38467953 DOI: 10.1007/s10072-024-07436-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Verbal fluency (VF) tasks are known as suitable for detecting cognitive impairment (CI) in Parkinson's disease (PD). This study thus aimed to evaluate the psychometrics and diagnostics of the Alternate Verbal Fluency Battery (AVFB) by Costa et al. (2014) in an Italian cohort of non-demented PD patients, as well as to derive disease-specific cut-offs for it. METHODS N = 192 non-demented PD patients were screened with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and underwent the AVFB-which includes phonemic, semantic and alternate VF tests (PVF; SVF; AVF), as well as a Composite Shifting Index (CSI) reflecting the "cost" of shifting from a single- to a double-cued VF task. Construct validity and diagnostics were assessed for each AVFB measure against the MoCA. Internal reliability and factorial validity were also tested. RESULTS The MoCA proved to be strongly associated with PVF, SVF and AVF scores, whilst moderately with the CSI. The AVFB was internally consistent and underpinned by a single component; however, an improvement in both internal reliability and fit to its factorial structure was observed when dropping the CSI. Demographically adjusted scores on PVF, SVF and AVF tests were diagnostically sound in detecting MoCA-defined cognitive impairment, whilst this was not true for the CSI. Disease-specific cut-offs for PVF, SVF and AVF tests were derived. DISCUSSION In conclusion, PVF, SVF and AVF tests are reliable, valid and diagnostically sound instruments to detect cognitive impairment in non-demented PD patients and are therefore recommended for use in clinical practice and research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edoardo Nicolò Aiello
- Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy
| | - Francesca Mameli
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabiana Ruggiero
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Eleonora Zirone
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Stefano Zago
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Barbara Poletti
- Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy
- Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology, Università Degli Studi Di Milano, Via Santa Sofia 9, 20122, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Gabriella Santangelo
- Department of Psychology, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Caserta, Italy
| | - Nicola Ticozzi
- Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Silani
- Department of Neurology and Laboratory of Neuroscience, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano, Milan, Italy
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Alberto Priori
- ASST Santi Paolo e Carlo, San Paolo University Hospital, Milan, Italy
- "Aldo Ravelli" Center for Neurotechnology and Experimental Brain Therapeutics, Department of Health Sciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberta Ferrucci
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy.
- Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology, Università Degli Studi Di Milano, Via Santa Sofia 9, 20122, Milan, Italy.
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Karousou A, Economacou D, Makris N. Clustering and Switching in Semantic Verbal Fluency: Their Development and Relationship with Word Productivity in Typically Developing Greek-Speaking Children and Adolescents. J Intell 2023; 11:209. [PMID: 37998708 PMCID: PMC10671952 DOI: 10.3390/jintelligence11110209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/28/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Performance in semantic verbal fluency (SVF) tasks, mainly measured by the number of words of a particular semantic category produced within a limited time, is a widely accepted measure of cognitive functioning used in the neuropsychological assessment of children and adults. Two strategic processes, Clustering and Switching (C&S) have been proposed to underlie fluency processes and affect performance in the task. However, few studies have reported on the development of those cognitive strategies and their relationship with word productivity in typically developing children. Even fewer studies have covered a broad developmental period from preschool to adolescence or measured the effect of contextual factors in this relationship. Based on a sample of 472 typically developing Greek-speaking children aged 4;0 to 16;11 years, we investigated the development of SVF performance and reported on the degree to which it is affected by C&S strategies, children's sex, and level of parental education. Results revealed a large effect of age on word productivity and on the use of C&S strategies. Two switching factors (number of clusters and number of switches) and two clustering factors (mean cluster size and a novel measure, maximum cluster size), appeared to be significantly associated with word productivity, with the largest effect being attributed to the two switching factors. C&S factors, together with children's age and parental education, predicted 91.7% of the variance in the SVF score. Children's sex was not found to have a significant effect on either word productivity or C&S strategies. Results are discussed for their theoretical implications on the strategic processes underlying word production in typically developing children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Karousou
- Department of Education Sciences in Early Childhood, Democritus University of Thrace, 681 00 Alexandroupolis, Greece
| | - Dimitra Economacou
- Department of Primary Education, Democritus University of Thrace, 671 32 Xanthi, Greece; (D.E.); (N.M.)
| | - Nikos Makris
- Department of Primary Education, Democritus University of Thrace, 671 32 Xanthi, Greece; (D.E.); (N.M.)
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Ma J, Zhang G, Sun X, Chan P, Ye Z. Smaller and Denser Speech Graphs in Nondemented Patients with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. Behav Neurol 2023; 2023:3771601. [PMID: 37790602 PMCID: PMC10545463 DOI: 10.1155/2023/3771601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The well-established semantic fluency test measures the ability to produce a sequence of spoken words from a particular category within a limited period of time. Like patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) tend to produce fewer correct words than age-matched healthy adults. This study further examined the difference between patients with PSP and PD in their semantic fluency performance using a graph theory-based approach. Twenty-nine patients with PSP Richardson's syndrome (PSP-RS), thirty-eight patients with PD, and fifty-one healthy controls (HC) were recruited. All participants completed a standard semantic fluency test (animals). Their verbal responses were recorded, transcripted, and transformed into directed speech graphs. The speech graphs of the PSP-RS group showed higher density, shorter diameter, and shorter average shortest path than those of the PD and HC groups. It indicates that the PSP-RS group produced smaller and denser speech graphs than the PD and HC groups. In the PSP-RS group, moreover, the average shortest paths of the speech graphs correlated with the severity of motor symptoms. This study shows the potential of the graph theory-based approach in distinguishing the semantic fluency performance of nondemented patients with PSP-RS and PD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinghong Ma
- Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Guanyu Zhang
- China Institute of Sport Science, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaomin Sun
- Department of Neurology, Weifang People's Hospital, Weifang, China
| | - Piu Chan
- Department of Neurobiology, Neurology and Geriatrics, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing Institute of Geriatrics, Beijing, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- Institute of Neuroscience, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
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Iñesta C, Oltra-Cucarella J, Sitges-Maciá E. Regression-Based Normative Data for Independent and Cognitively Active Spanish Older Adults: Verbal Fluency Tests and Boston Naming Test. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022; 19:11445. [PMID: 36141718 PMCID: PMC9517509 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191811445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 09/06/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
An increased cognitive reserve is associated with changes in the pattern of cognitive decline during aging. Thus, normative data adapted to the characteristics of the target population are needed to reduce the possibility of false diagnoses. The aim of this work was to develop normative data for the Phonemic Verbal Fluency test, the Semantic Verbal Fluency test and the Boston Naming Test (BNT). METHOD Regression-based normative data were calculated from a sample of 118 non-depressed, cognitively active, independent community-dwelling adults aged 55 or older (64.4% women) from SABIEX (University for Seniors at the Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche). Raw scores were regressed on age, sex, and education. RESULTS The effects of age and education varied across neuropsychological measures. No effect of sex was found in any of the tests assessed. Statistically significant differences were found in the proportion of low scores using SABIEX or population-based normative datasets. The level of agreement identifying individuals labeled as showing one or more low scores was only fair-to-good. CONCLUSIONS Normative data obtained from the general population might not be sensitive to identify low scores in cognitively active older adults, increasing the risk of misdiagnoses. A friendly calculator is available for neuropsychological assessment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara Iñesta
- SABIEX, Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, Av. de la Universidad, 03207 Elche, Spain
| | - Javier Oltra-Cucarella
- SABIEX, Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, Av. de la Universidad, 03207 Elche, Spain
- Department of Health Psychology, Miguel Hernández University of Elche, 03202 Elche, Spain
| | - Esther Sitges-Maciá
- SABIEX, Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, Av. de la Universidad, 03207 Elche, Spain
- Department of Health Psychology, Miguel Hernández University of Elche, 03202 Elche, Spain
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