Racial/Ethnic Differences in Neuropsychological Test Performance in Frontotemporal Degeneration

Racial and/or ethnic differences in neuropsychological test performance are understudied in frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) but their identification is critical to identifying ways to improve care of representative FTD populations.

Differences in cognitive scores between Black and Hispanic relative to White participants were assessed with the sequential addition of potential contributing factors. Group differences in the likelihood of impairment status in cognitive test performance were also evaluated.

Minoritized individuals had lower scores and/or greater likelihood of impairment on measures of lexical retrieval, processing speed, cognitive flexibility, and working memory but not global cognition, verbal recall, attention, and category fluency. Addition of factors attenuated group differences.

Racial/ethnic differences on neuropsychological tests used in diagnosis and monitoring of FTD were substantially attenuated when accounting for potential contributing factors. To address these differences in FTD, future efforts must increase representative research participation of patients and understand social determinants of health.