montreal cognitive assessment moca assessment

Montreal cognitive assessment moca assessment update#

In Italy, the MoCA has been adapted and standardized-and both its statistical properties and clinical usability thoroughly examined. The MoCA is a rapid (5–10’) screening test which evaluates both non-instrumental (executive functioning, attention) and instrumental (language, memory, visuo-spatial abilities, orientation) domains. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is one of the most widespread and psychometrically robust screening tools for cognitive impairments of graded severity. Fine-grained, adaptive psychometric approaches can thus help solve interpretation issues to facilitate diagnostic processes by magnifying informativity. Compared to screening tests for dementia, those aimed at detecting mild-to-moderate cognitive impairment may be harder for practitioners to interpret because of (a) the magnitude of the target construct (i.e., the deficit) being less obvious and (b) the amount of information provided by the test being limited. Italian practitioners should consider an adaptive use of region-specific norms for the MoCA.Ĭognitive screening/first-level tests allow an estimate of global efficiency/functioning by adequately balancing between informativity and practicality of usage. Item-level information herewith provided for the Italian MoCA can help interpret its scores by Italian practitioners.

Memory items showed high discriminative capability, along with certain items assessing executive functions and orientation. Several items proved to be scarcely sensitive, especially the place item from Orientation and the letter detection task. Substantial disagreements with previous ESs classifications were detected. No sex differences were detected when tested along with age and education. ResultsĪge and education significantly predicted all MoCA measures except for Orientation, which was related to age only. Agreement with previous ESs classification was assessed via Cohen’s k. Normative values were derived by means of the Equivalent Scores (ESs) method, applied to the MoCA and its sub-scales. Item Response Theory (IRT) was adopted to assess item difficulty and discrimination. Methodsįive hundred and seventy nine healthy individuals from Northern Italy (208 males, 371 females age: 63.4 ± 15, 21–96 education: 11.3 ± 4.6, 1–25) were administered the MoCA. This study thus aimed at providing: (i) updated, region-specific norms for the Italian MoCA, by also (ii) comparing them to pre-existing ones with higher geographical coverage (iii) information on sensitivity and discriminative capability at the item level.

The presented norms consider the cognitive domains subscores, consequently improving the comprehension and utility of the results obtained from the MoCA test.Ĭognitive screening mild cognitive impairment montreal cognitive assessment norms psychological assessment.The availability of fine-grained, culture-specific psychometric outcomes can favor the interpretation of scores of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), the most frequently used instrument to screen for mild cognitive dysfunctions in both instrumental and non-instrumental domains. The new age groups and more stratified norms comply with the natural changes on the Portuguese population, providing an increase of power and clinical accuracy.

Montreal cognitive assessment moca assessment update#

The present study contributes to a reliable update of the normative data of MoCA. These results foster the consideration of age and educational level in the development of normative data. The analysis of the relationships between the sociodemographic variables and the MoCA show that age and educational level had a significant effect on MoCA scores, with educational level being the better predictor. All participants completed a neuropsychological assessment battery, in which the MoCA was included. The study sample was composed of 860 cognitively healthy adults, stratified according to verified distribution of the Portuguese population across several sociodemographic variables. After ten years, it became relevant to update the previous Portuguese normative study due to changes in the population and some limitations present in the study itself. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a brief cognitive screening instrument that is known for its good psychometric properties and sensitivity to detect mild cognitive impairment (MCI).