Standard measures of executive function in predicting instrumental activities of daily living in older adults

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the ability of specific, commonly used neuropsychological tests of executive function to predict functional status among a group of elderly subjects. METHODS: Fifty study participants underwent a brief neuropsychological evaluation of executive functions and assessment of instrumental activities of daily living (IADL). RESULTS: A multiple stepwise regression analysis indicated that executive function tests accounted for 54% of the variance in functional status. An examination of the standardized regression coefficients revealed that Trail Making Test-Part B and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test were the only two of the five executive function tests that significantly predicted functional status. These executive function measures contributed significantly to the prediction of functional status even after statistically controlling for age, sex, and education. CONCLUSION: Thus, the common clinical measures of executive function are useful in predicting functional status in older adults.