Development and validation of the Pictorial Cognitive Screening Inventory for illiterate people with dementia

The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a tool called the Pictorial Cognitive Screening Inventory (PCSI), which consists of pictorial memory and attention tests that are not influenced by literacy level.

PCSI, Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) questionnaires were administered to 80 elderly participants (20 illiterate normal, 20 illiterate with dementia, 20 literate normal, and 20 literate with dementia).

PCSI scores were highly correlated with those of the MMSE (r 0.51) and the CDR (r -0.71). In addition, the PCSI scores differed significantly between the normal group and the dementia group (mean difference 1.71, standard error [SE] 0.14, P<0.001), while no such difference was observed between the illiterate group and the literate group (mean difference 0.00, SE 0.24, P=0.997). Diagnostic validity of the PCSI is excellent, with a sensitivity of 90% and a specificity of 98% for screening dementia, whereas the MMSE has a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 60%.

These results indicate that the PCSI is a sensitive and reliable test for screening dementia, regardless of an individual's literacy skills. The PCSI meets the increasing needs for screening of dementia in illiterate elderly populations in developing countries.