Are the Clock-Drawing Test and the MMSE Combined Interchangeable with CAMCOG as a Dementia Evaluation Instrument in a Specialized Outpatient Setting?

This study examines whether the Clock-Drawing Test (CDT) combined with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is interchangeable with the more detailed and lengthy Cambridge Cognitive Examination (CAMCOG) as a dementia evaluation instrument in a specialized psychogeriatric outpatient setting: 114 outpatients (88 with dementia, 26 with depressive and anxiety disorders) were included. Each subject underwent a comprehensive evaluation in which the CAMCOG (MMSE included) was administered. DSM-IV diagnoses were independently established. CAMCOG-derived clock drawings were blindly scored according to Freedman's method. The authors found that a combination of CDT and MMSE enhanced the psychometric properties of the above scales approximating them to CAMCOG's. They conclude that CDT in combination with the MMSE is valid for differentiation of dementia sufferers from nondemented psychiatric controls in a specialistic setting and might replace CAMCOG. However, the generalizability of these findings (a wider range of diagnoses, primary care settings) still needs to be verified.