Key result
First 15 seconds of semantic verbal fluency testing best predict cognitive status in older adults.
Why the study?
This work thoroughly evaluated the association between cognitive status, mental disorders, and semantic verbal fluency.
Does semantic verbal fluency performance correlate with cognitive status and mental disorders in middle-aged and older adults?
Cross-Sectional (n=74)
Does semantic verbal fluency performance correlate with cognitive status and mental disorders in middle-aged and older adults?
The words articulated during the first fifteen seconds of a semantic verbal fluency task may help predict cognitive decline.
May support brief cognitive screening; leaves open prospective predictive validity in longitudinal studies.
OBJECTIVE: This work thoroughly evaluated the association between cognitive status, mental disorders, and semantic verbal fluency (SVF). METHODS: Correlations between mental disorders, cognitive status, and demographic and medical history of 74 participants were analyzed. The SVF temporal course per 15-second period of a five-category task was assessed. RESULTS: Eight SVF principal components, led by a component consisting of the first fifteen-second periods (P1), were extracted. Regression analyses for cognitive status showed that the P1 component was the best predictor. CONCLUSION: Thus, the words articulated during the first fifteen seconds of the SVF task may improve the prognosis and diagnosis of cognitive decline.
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Maldonado-Vargas et al. (2025) conducted a cross-sectional in Cognitive decline and mental disorders (n=74). Semantic verbal fluency (SVF) temporal course (first 15-second period) was evaluated on Cognitive status prediction. The words articulated during the first fifteen seconds of a semantic verbal fluency task were the best predictor of cognitive status in middle-aged and older adults.
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