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Retention rates on RBANS memory subtests in elderly adults
Mike R Schoenberg1, Kevin Duff, Leigh J Beglinger
1American Board of Clinical Neuropsychology, Department of Neurology, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA. Michael.Schoenberg@UHHospitals.org
This study evaluated memory retention rates using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) in clinical patients versus healthy controls. Clinical patients showed significantly lower retention rates on RBANS memory subtests, suggesting added diagnostic utility.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Cognitive Assessment
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Memory impairment identification is crucial for neuropsychological diagnosis and research.
- The Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) is a popular cognitive screening tool.
- Normative data for RBANS memory subtest retention rates are currently unavailable.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate verbal and visual memory retention rates using the RBANS in a clinical patient sample compared to a healthy control group.
- To determine if RBANS retention rates can enhance its clinical utility for neuropsychological assessment.
- To establish preliminary normative data for RBANS retention rates.
Main Methods:
- Retention rates of verbal and visual material were assessed in 109 clinical patients and 718 healthy controls.
- Individual subtest retention rates were converted to age-corrected scaled scores.
- Scores were based on the cumulative distribution of raw scores from an elderly community-dwelling sample.
Main Results:
- Clinical patients exhibited significantly lower percent retention compared to the healthy normative sample across all three RBANS memory subtests.
- This finding was consistent for both verbal and visual memory components.
- Age-corrected scaled scores for retention revealed significant group differences.
Conclusions:
- Preliminary data indicate that RBANS memory subtest retention rates may significantly enhance the test's clinical utility.
- These findings support the use of RBANS retention rates in neuropsychological diagnostic and research applications.
- Further research is warranted to validate these findings in diverse clinical populations.
