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The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is an established cognitive screening tool in older adults. It remains unclear, however, how to interpret its scores over time and distinguish age-associated cognitive decline (AACD) from early neurodegeneration. We aimed to create cognitive charts using the MoCA for longitudinal evaluation of AACD in clinical practice.We analyzed data from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (9684 participants aged 60 years or older) who completed the MoCA at baseline. We developed a linear regression model for the MoCA score as a function of age and education. Based on this model, we generated the Cognitive Charts-MoCA designed to optimize accuracy for distinguishing participants with MCI and dementia from healthy controls. We validated our model using two separate data sets.For longitudinal evaluation of the Cognitive Charts-MoCA, sensitivity (SE) was 89%, 95% confidence interval (CI): [86%, 92%] and specificity (SP) 79%, 95% CI: [77%, 81%], hence showing better performance than fixed cutoffs of MoCA (SE 82%, 95% CI: [79%, 85%], SP 68%, 95% CI: [67%, 70%]). For current cognitive status or baseline measurement, the Cognitive Charts-MoCA had a SE of 81%, 95% CI: [79%, 82%], SP of 84%, 95% CI: [83%, 85%] in distinguishing healthy controls from mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Results in two additional validation samples were comparable.The Cognitive Charts-MoCA showed high validity and diagnostic accuracy for determining whether older individuals show abnormal performance on serial MoCAs. This innovative model allows longitudinal cognitive evaluation and enables prompt initiation of investigation and treatment when appropriate.

Objectives: To describe the 6-month outcomes of co-occurring delirium (full syndrome and subsyndromal symptoms), depression, and dementia in a long-term care (LTC) population. Design: Observational, prospective cohort study with 6-month follow-up conducted from 2005 to 2009. Setting: Seven LTC facilities in the province of Quebec, Canada. Participants: Newly admitted and long-term residents recruited consecutively from lists of residents aged 65 and older admitted for LTC, with stratification into groups with and without severe cognitive impairment. The study sample comprised 274 residents with complete data at baseline on delirium, dementia, and depression. Measurements: Outcomes were 6-month mortality, functional decline (10-point decline from baseline on 100-point Barthel scale), and cognitive decline (3-point decline on 30-point Mini-Mental State Examination). Predictors included delirium (full syndrome or subsyndromal symptoms, using the Confusion Assessment Method), depression (Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia), and dementia (chart diagnosis). Results: The baseline prevalences of delirium, subsyndromal symptoms of delirium (SSD), depression, and dementia were 11%, 44%, 19%, and 66%, respectively. By 6 months, 10% of 274 had died, 19% of 233 had experienced functional decline, and 17% of 246 had experienced cognitive decline. An analysis using multivariable generalized linear models found the following significant interaction effects (P < .15): between depression and dementia for mortality, between delirium and depression for functional decline, and between SSD and dementia for cognitive decline. Conclusion: Co-occurrence of delirium, SSD, depression, and dementia in LTC residents appears to affect some 6-month outcomes. Because of limited statistical power, it was not possible to draw conclusions about the effects of the co-occurrence of some syndromes on poorer outcomes.

Objective: To describe Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) core symptoms of delirium occurring before and after incident episodes of delirium in older long-term care (LTC) residents. A secondary objective was to describe the mean number of symptoms before and after episodes by dementia status. Design: Secondary analysis of data collected for a prospective cohort study of delirium, with repeated weekly assessments for up to 6 months. Setting: Seven LTC facilities in Montreal and Quebec City, Canada. Participants: Forty-one older LTC residents who had at least one CAM-defined incident episode of delirium. Measurements: The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), CAM, Delirium Index (DI), Hierarchic Dementia Scale, Barthel Index, and Cornell Scale for Depression were completed at baseline. The MMSE, CAM, and DI were repeated weekly for 6 months. The frequency, mean number, type, and duration of CAM core symptoms of delirium occurring before and after incident episodes were examined using descriptive statistics, frequency analysis, and survival analysis. Results: CAM core symptoms of delirium preceded 38 (92.7%) episodes of delirium for many weeks; core symptoms followed 37 (90.2%) episodes for many weeks. Symptoms of inattention and disorganized thinking occurred most commonly. The mean number of symptoms was higher in residents with dementia but not significantly so. Conclusion: CAM core symptoms of delirium were frequent and protracted before and after most incident episodes of delirium in LTC residents with and without dementia. If replicated, these findings have potentially important implications for clinical practice and research in LTC settings.

Objectives: To identify potentially modifiable environmental factors (including number of medications) associated with changes over time in the severity of delirium symptoms and to explore the interactions between these factors and resident baseline vulnerability. Design: Prospective, observational cohort study. Setting: Seven long-term care (LTC) facilities. Participants: Two hundred seventy-two LTC residents aged 65 and older with and without delirium. Measurements: Weekly assessments (for up to 6 months) of the severity of delirium symptoms using the Delirium Index (DI), environmental risk factors, and number of medications. Baseline vulnerability measures included a diagnosis of dementia and a delirium risk score. Associations between environmental factors, medications, and weekly changes in DI were analyzed using a general linear model with correlated errors. Results: Six potentially modifiable environmental factors predicted weekly changes in DI (absence of reading glasses, aids to orientation, family member, and glass of water and presence of bed rails and other restraints) as did the prescription of two or more new medications. Residents with dementia appeared to be more sensitive to the effects of these factors. Conclusion: Six environmental factors and prescription of two or more new medications predicted changes in the severity of delirium symptoms. These risk factors are potentially modifiable through improved LTC clinical practices.

Objectives: To determine the incidence of, risk factors for, and outcomes of subsyndromal delirium (SSD) in older long-term care (LTC) residents and, secondarily, to explore the use of a more-restrictive definition of SSD. Design: Cohort study with repeated weekly assessments for up to 6 months. Setting: Seven LTC facilities in Montreal and Quebec City, Canada. Participants: One hundred four LTC residents aged 65 and older and free of delirium core symptoms at baseline. Measurements: The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Confusion Assessment Method (CAM), Delirium Index (DI), Hierarchic Dementia Scale (HDS), and Barthel Index (BI) were completed at baseline. The MMSE, CAM, and DI were repeated weekly for 6 months. SSD1 required one or more CAM core symptoms; SSD2, a more-restrictive definition, required two or more CAM core symptoms. Outcomes at 6 months were decline on the MMSE, HDS, and BI; mortality; and a composite outcome. Results: Sixty-eight of 104 residents had SSD1. In survival analysis, the incidence was 5.2 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 4.1�6.7) per 100 person-weeks of follow-up. In multivariate analysis, risk factors were male sex and more-severe cognitive impairment at baseline. The differences in outcomes between residents with and without SSD1 were small and not statistically significant. SSD2 had a lower incidence (1.3, 95% CI = 0.9�1.9), similar risk factors, and statistically significantly worse cognitive outcomes. Conclusion: SSD2 appears to be a clinically important disorder in older LTC residents. Despite limited statistical power, these findings have potentially important implications for clinical practice and research in LTC settings.