A – 16 Verbal Memory Changes in Preclinical Alzheimer’s Disease

Objective California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) and Logical Memory (LM) scores may detect early risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In this case study, 6 individuals were classified cognitively healthy at Time 1 but not at Time 2. We explored which CVLT and LM scores showed greater change over time and whether CVLT showed greater change than LM. Method Six participants (5 female, 1 male; mean age = 78.6 years at Time 1, 82.6 at Time 2) were selected from a longitudinal aging study at Huntington Medical Research Institutes based on cognitive status change over time. Time 2 diagnoses included one participant with signs of AD, three with mild cognitive impairment—non-amnestic type (MCI-na), and two cognitively impaired who did not meet criteria for MCI. Analyses focused on longitudinal z-score changes. Results The most notable clinical separation emerged in delayed recall z-score changes, especially on LM subtests. The AD case showed a 1.00 SD drop in LM II versus a 0.33 drop for the MCI-na cases. The z-score difference between LM II and LM-I was -0.67 for the MCI-na cases and +0.33 for the AD case, indicating impaired consolidation in the latter. CVLT retention was 75% in MCI-na cases. Recognition z scores showed preserved performance in MCI-na, with mild deficits in AD. Conclusion The z-score trajectories, especially LM delayed recall and within-test decline, appear more sensitive to AD-type impairment compared to CVLT indices. These findings support the value of longitudinal standardized scoring in clinical differentiation.