역학적 연구에서 치매 의심의 문제 : 비치매와의 비교

Problem of Questionable Dementia in Epidemiological Studies: Comparison with Non-dementia

Objective : This study was conducted to answer the question whether questionable dementia should be considered as non-dementia or dementia in epidemiological studies. Subjects & Methods : In an epidemiological study of dementia, 20 elderly people with questionable dementia and 22 with non-dementia were obtained. The diagnostic criterion used was DSM-III-R. The two groups were similar regarding age, sex and education. Total MMSEK score, MMSEK subscores and quantified cognitive functions were compared between the two groups, using two-tailed t-test Results : Total MMSEK score and majority of MMSEK subscores were significantly lower in questionable dementia. Short- and long-term memories and some other cognitive functions were also significantly poorer in questionable dementia. Conclusion : These findings strongly suggest that questionable dementia should be distinguished from non-dementia and should be regarded as early or mild dementia