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The relationship between severity of dementia and performance in four experimental tasks was studied in nine patients with Alzheimer's disease and nine age-matched controls. The experimental tasks were developed in order to establish a direct measure of functional performance in common activities of daily living. In the Alzheimer's patients, significant but moderate positive associations were found between the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR), a comprehensive rating tool designed specifically for Alzheimer's disease, and performance on the experimental tasks. A significant correlation was also found between the results of the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ), a less specific dementia assessment instrument, and the CDR but not between the SPMSQ and the performance measure. When compared to nine normal subjects matched for gender, age, and education, the cognitively impaired subjects required more assistance and time (P less than .01) in completing the tasks. The findings support the conclusion that severity of dementia and performance on activities of daily living tasks are related but distinct concepts and should be measured separately.
Skurla et al. (Mon,) studied this question.