Convenient Auditory-Based Language and Executive Function Test for Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A...

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Neuropsychology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) frequently presents with cognitive impairment, affecting 30%-50% of patients.
• Cognitive deficits in ALS range from mild dysexecutive syndrome to frontotemporal dementia.
• Existing cognitive assessments may be burdensome due to motor function requirements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate the Convenient Auditory-based Language and Executive Function Test (CABLET).
• To enable rapid and convenient detection of cognitive impairment in ALS patients.
• To minimize the impact of motor deficits on cognitive testing in ALS.

Main Methods:

• The CABLET utilizes auditory verbal stimuli across two tests: word repetition/lexical judgment and verbal short-term memory/semantics.
• Test administration is brief, with Test 1 taking 1 minute and Test 2 taking 3-5 minutes.
• The study included 61 ALS patients and 46 healthy controls, comparing CABLET performance with standard neuropsychological tests.

Main Results:

• The CABLET demonstrated strong diagnostic accuracy for identifying ALS with cognitive impairment (ALSci), with an AUC of 0.894 for the total score.
• Test 2 of the CABLET showed particularly high diagnostic performance (AUC: 0.893), with 100% sensitivity and 71.4% specificity.
• Convergent validity was supported by significant correlations between CABLET scores and established neuropsychological tests.

Conclusions:

• The CABLET is a promising tool for the rapid identification of cognitive impairment in ALS (ALSci).
• The test's auditory nature reduces the burden on motor function, making it suitable for ALS patients.
• Further validation in larger cohorts and comparison with existing ALS-specific cognitive screens are recommended.