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The association between late-life cognitive test scores and retrospective informant interview data

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 July 2010

Riccardo E. Marioni ,
Fiona E. Matthews  and
Carol Brayne
Riccardo E. Marioni*
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, CambridgeU.K.
Fiona E. Matthews
Affiliation:
MRC Biostatistics Unit, Cambridge, U.K.
Carol Brayne
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, CambridgeU.K.
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Riccardo E. Marioni, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University Forvie Site, Cambridge CB2 0SR, U.K. Phone: +44 1223 763837; Fax: +44 1223 330330. Email: [email protected].
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Abstract

Background: Cognitive assessment of older persons, particularly those with impairment, is hampered by measurement error and the ethical issues of testing people with dementia. A potential source of valuable information about end-of-life cognitive status can be gained from those who knew the respondent well – mostly relatives or friends. This study tested the association between last cognitive assessment before death and a retrospective informant assessment of cognition.

Methods: Data were analyzed from 248 participants from the Medical Research Council Cognitive Function and Ageing Study who were aged 71 to 102 years at death. Late-life cognition was assessed 0 to 8 years before death using the Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) and the informant measure was taken 0 to 7 years after death using a Retrospective Informant Interview (RInI).

Results: Zero-inflated Poisson regression showed a strong association between MMSE scores and RInI scores – those scoring 29–30 on the MMSE had a RInI score four times lower than those who scored <18 (p < 0.001). The time between MMSE and death was also a significant predictor with each additional year increasing RInI scores by 12.4% (p < 0.001). The time between death and RInI was only a significant predictor when including measures that were taken four years or more after death.

Conclusions: Cognitive scores from retrospective informant interviews are strongly associated with late-life MMSE scores taken close to death. This suggests that the RInI can be used as a proxy measure of cognition in the period leading up to death.

Keywords

agingcognitive testingepidemiologydeath and dying
Type
Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 23 , Issue 2 , March 2011 , pp. 274 - 279
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2010

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