Longitudinal testing of visual perception in dementia with Lewy bodies and Alzheimers disease
International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 07/27/2012
Clinical Article
Wood JS et al. – The Newcastle Visual Perception is a reliable test of visuo–perception, relatively independent of cognitive decline, with predictive value in identifying dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) participants at risk of functional decline. Visuo–perceptual dysfunction is a core feature of the disorder for some DLB patients and was stable over the 12–month period examined here.
Methods- Following the previous work using the Newcastle Visual Perception (NEVIP) battery, the authors re–assessed 16 AD, 12 DLB and 28 similar–aged comparison participants 12months after initial baseline assessment.
- DLB visual perception at follow–up showed worse performance than AD (U=43, p=0.027); however, there were no significant changes in visuo–perceptual scores between baseline assessment and 12–month assessment within groups.
- A poor baseline score on the NEVIP predicted subsequent deterioration on the Bristol Activities of Daily Living Scale (rs=–0.725, p=0.014) in DLB participants but not in the AD group.
