A Novel Rating Scale for the Measurement of Apathy in Institutionalized Persons with Dementia: The APADEM-NH

Objective Apathy is one of the most frequent symptoms of dementia, still needing better measurement methods. The objective of this study was to validate a new scale for apathy in institutionalized persons with dementia (APADEM-NH). Methods The scale includes 26 items distributed in three dimensions:...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of geriatric psychiatry 2015-02, Vol.23 (2), p.149-159
Main Authors: Agüera-Ortiz, Luis, M.D., Ph.D, Gil-Ruiz, Nuria, Ph.D, Cruz-Orduña, Isabel, Ph.D, Ramos-García, Isabel, M.D, Osorio, Ricardo S., M.D, Valentí-Soler, Meritxell, M.D, Olazarán-Rodriguez, Javier, M.D., Ph.D, Dobato-Ayuso, José L., M.D., Ph.D, Lanctôt, Krista, Ph.D, Martínez-Martín, Pablo, M.D., Ph.D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Apathy
Dementia - diagnosis
Dementia - psychology
Female
Humans
Institutionalization
Internal Medicine
Male
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Psychometrics
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Objective Apathy is one of the most frequent symptoms of dementia, still needing better measurement methods. The objective of this study was to validate a new scale for apathy in institutionalized persons with dementia (APADEM-NH). Methods The scale includes 26 items distributed in three dimensions: Deficit of Thinking and Self-Generated behaviors (DT): 13 items, Emotional Blunting (EB): 7 items, and Cognitive Inertia (CI): 6 items. The sample included 100 institutionalized patients (90% female) with probable Alzheimer disease (AD) (57%), possible AD (13%), AD + cerebral vascular disease (17%), Lewy body dementia (11%), and Parkinson associated to dementia (2%), covering all stages of dementia severity according to the Global Deterioration Scale and Clinical Dementia Rating. Additional assessments were the Apathy Inventory, Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Cornell Scale for Depression, and the tested scale. Re-test and inter-rater reliability were carried out in 50 patients. Results All subscales lacked relevant floor and ceiling effects (
ISSN:1064-7481
1545-7214
DOI:10.1016/j.jagp.2013.01.079