Affiliations: [a] Department of Geriatrics, Hospital General de Villarrobledo, Albacete, Spain | [b] Department of Geriatrics, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Albacete, Albacete, Spain | [c] Department of Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Sergio Salmerón, MD, Geriatrics Department, Hospital General de Villarrobledo, Av. Miguel de Cervantes, s/n, 02600 Villarrobledo, Albacete, Spain. Tel.: +34 638567200; Fax: +34 967133038; E-mail: sergiosalmeron@hotmail.com
Abstract: Background:There are no short valid instruments to evaluate cognitive status in severe Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients in the Spanish language. Objective:To validate the Spanish version of the Baylor Profound Mental Status Examination (BPMSE-Sp). Methods:The Baylor Profound Mental Status Examination (BPMSE) was translated to Spanish and back translated. Validation was conducted in 100 patients with severe probable AD with a Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) <12. We assessed internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha), concurrent validity (Pearson’s correlations) with the MMSE, Severe Impairment Battery (SIB), Neuropsychiatric Inventory Short Form (NPI-Q) and the Functional Assessment Staging and reliability. Results:The mean age of patients was 84.9; 74% were female; 64% were institutionalized. The mean MMSE was 5.6; the mean BPMSE-Sp was 13.6; the mean BPMSE-Sp behavior was 1.2; the mean SIB was 42.2; and the mean NPI-Q was 4.7. BPMSE-Sp presented good internal consistency (Cronbach α= 0.84). There were significant correlations between the BPMSE-Sp and MMSE (r = 0.86, p < 0.001), and between the BPMSE-Sp and SIB (r = 0.92, p < 0.001). Inter-rater and test-retest reliability were in both cases excellent, ranging between 0.96 and 0.99 (p < 0.001). BPMSE-Sp had fewer floor and ceiling effects than the MMSE. Conclusions:The BPMSE-Sp is a valid tool for use in daily practice and research in the evaluation of cognitive function of patients with severe AD.
Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, Baylor Profound Mental Status Examination, severe dementia, validation
