Telephone screening for amnestic mild cognitive impairment

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Gerontology
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a preclinical stage of dementia.
• Early identification of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) is crucial for clinical trial enrollment.
• Telephone screening offers a scalable method for initial participant assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the effectiveness of telephone screening in identifying subjects with aMCI.
• To determine which components of the modified Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (TICS-m) best predict aMCI diagnosis.
• To optimize recruitment for clinical trials targeting aMCI.

Main Methods:

• A stepwise telephone screening procedure was employed, including inclusion/exclusion criteria review, Category Fluency Test (CFT), and TICS-m.
• Subjects meeting specific CFT and TICS-m cutoffs were referred for in-clinic assessment.
• Post hoc factor analysis and logistic regression analyzed TICS-m components for predictive value.

Main Results:

• Out of 16,988 initial callers, 324 subjects met clinical criteria for aMCI.
• The TICS-m yielded three factors: language/attention, orientation, and memory.
• The memory factor, specifically word list recall, was the strongest predictor of aMCI.

Conclusions:

• Telephone screening is a viable method for identifying potential aMCI participants, though overall recruitment yield was low (2%).
• A significant proportion (43%) of those completing telephone screening and clinic visits met aMCI criteria.
• TICS-m's memory recall subtests are key indicators for aMCI identification in telephone-based screening.