Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study

Abstract BackgroundDementia is characterized by impairments in an individual’s cognitive and functional abilities. Digital cognitive assessments have been shown to be effective in detecting mild cognitive impairment and dementia, but whether they can stage the disease remains...

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Main Authors: Duong Huynh, Kevin Sun, Mary Patterson, Reza Hosseini Ghomi, Bin Huang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: JMIR Publications 2025-02-01
Series:JMIR Aging
Online Access:https://aging.jmir.org/2025/1/e65292
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author Duong Huynh
Kevin Sun
Mary Patterson
Reza Hosseini Ghomi
Bin Huang
author_facet Duong Huynh
Kevin Sun
Mary Patterson
Reza Hosseini Ghomi
Bin Huang
author_sort Duong Huynh
collection DOAJ
description Abstract BackgroundDementia is characterized by impairments in an individual’s cognitive and functional abilities. Digital cognitive assessments have been shown to be effective in detecting mild cognitive impairment and dementia, but whether they can stage the disease remains to be studied. ObjectiveIn this study, we examined (1) the correlation between scores obtained from BrainCheck standard battery of cognitive assessments (BC-Assess), a digital cognitive assessment, and scores obtained from the Dementia Severity Rating Scale (DSRS), and (2) the accuracy of using the BC-Assess score to predict dementia stage delineated by the DSRS score. We also explored whether BC-Assess can be combined with information from the Katz Index of Independence in activities of daily living (ADL) to obtain enhanced accuracy. MethodsRetrospective analysis was performed on a BrainCheck dataset containing 1751 patients with dementia with different cognitive and functional assessments completed for cognitive care planning, including the DSRS, the ADL, and the BC-Assess. The patients were staged according to their DSRS total score (DSRS-TS): 982 mild (DSRS-TS 10‐18), 656 moderate (DSRS-TS 19-26), and 113 severe (DSRS-TS 37-54) patients. Pearson correlation was used to assess the associations between BC-Assess overall score (BC-OS), ADL total score (ADL-TS), and DSRS-TS. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the possibility of using patients’ BC-OS and ADL-TS to predict their stage. ResultsWe found moderate Pearson correlations between DSRS-TS and BC-OS (rrr ConclusionsOur results suggest that BC-Assess could serve as an effective alternative tool to DSRS for grading dementia severity, particularly in cases where DSRS, or other global assessments, may be challenging to obtain due to logistical and time constraints.
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spelling doaj-art-4afff8df48ff4a899e748dbca91a02492025-08-20T03:01:19ZengJMIR PublicationsJMIR Aging2561-76052025-02-018e65292e6529210.2196/65292Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective StudyDuong Huynhhttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-3829-461XKevin Sunhttp://orcid.org/0000-0003-0639-3258Mary Pattersonhttp://orcid.org/0009-0003-9594-1427Reza Hosseini Ghomihttp://orcid.org/0000-0003-4369-8237Bin Huanghttp://orcid.org/0000-0002-0056-1794 Abstract BackgroundDementia is characterized by impairments in an individual’s cognitive and functional abilities. Digital cognitive assessments have been shown to be effective in detecting mild cognitive impairment and dementia, but whether they can stage the disease remains to be studied. ObjectiveIn this study, we examined (1) the correlation between scores obtained from BrainCheck standard battery of cognitive assessments (BC-Assess), a digital cognitive assessment, and scores obtained from the Dementia Severity Rating Scale (DSRS), and (2) the accuracy of using the BC-Assess score to predict dementia stage delineated by the DSRS score. We also explored whether BC-Assess can be combined with information from the Katz Index of Independence in activities of daily living (ADL) to obtain enhanced accuracy. MethodsRetrospective analysis was performed on a BrainCheck dataset containing 1751 patients with dementia with different cognitive and functional assessments completed for cognitive care planning, including the DSRS, the ADL, and the BC-Assess. The patients were staged according to their DSRS total score (DSRS-TS): 982 mild (DSRS-TS 10‐18), 656 moderate (DSRS-TS 19-26), and 113 severe (DSRS-TS 37-54) patients. Pearson correlation was used to assess the associations between BC-Assess overall score (BC-OS), ADL total score (ADL-TS), and DSRS-TS. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the possibility of using patients’ BC-OS and ADL-TS to predict their stage. ResultsWe found moderate Pearson correlations between DSRS-TS and BC-OS (rrr ConclusionsOur results suggest that BC-Assess could serve as an effective alternative tool to DSRS for grading dementia severity, particularly in cases where DSRS, or other global assessments, may be challenging to obtain due to logistical and time constraints.https://aging.jmir.org/2025/1/e65292
spellingShingle Duong Huynh
Kevin Sun
Mary Patterson
Reza Hosseini Ghomi
Bin Huang
Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
JMIR Aging
title Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
title_full Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
title_fullStr Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
title_full_unstemmed Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
title_short Performance of a Digital Cognitive Assessment in Predicting Dementia Stages Delineated by the Dementia Severity Rating Scale: Retrospective Study
title_sort performance of a digital cognitive assessment in predicting dementia stages delineated by the dementia severity rating scale retrospective study
url https://aging.jmir.org/2025/1/e65292
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