Telephone-based cognitive screening in neurodegenerative MCI and dementia: preliminary findings from the TBCS Study

Background: This study aimed to provide preliminary information on the clinical usability of a set of Italian telephone-based cognitive screening (TBCS) tests in patients with neurodegenerative MCI and dementia. Methods: Eighty-one patients with MCI (N = 32) and dementia (N = 49) due to Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration and Lewy body disease and 100 healthy controls (HCs) were administered a battery of TBCS tests assessing global cognition (Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status), executive functioning (Telephone-based Frontal Assessment Battery), verbal fluency (Telephone-based Phonemic and Semantic Verbal Fluency), working memory (Telephone-based Backward Digit Span) and language (Telephone Language Screener). For each test, we assessed their (1) applicability, (2) construct validity against in-person first- and second-level cognitive measures, (3) ecological validity against the Amsterdam IADL Questionnaire-Short Version (A-IADL-Q-SV), (4) capability to discriminate MCI and dementia patients from HCs and (5) to discriminate MCI from dementia. Results: TBCS tests could be completed by the majority of patients (75–96%), with applicability rates being higher in MCI than in dementia. Moderate-to-strong correlations were detected between TBCS tests and both in-person cognitive measures and the A-IADL-Q-SV. All TBCS tests – except for the Backward Digit Span – optimally-to-excellently discriminated HCs from both MCI and dementia, by nevertheless being less accurate in discriminating between these two entities. Conclusions: Italian TBCS tests are valid and accurate measures for the detection of MCI and dementia due to neurodegenerative etiologies, thus prompting further research on the topic and their use in clinical practice and research.