Publication date: December 2019
Source: Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring, Volume 11
Author(s): Rosie E. Curiel Cid, David A. Loewenstein, Monica Rosselli, Jordi A. Matias-Guiu, Daema Piña, Malek Adjouadi, Mercedes Cabrerizo, Russell M. Bauer, Aldrich Chan, Steven T. DeKosky, Todd Golde, Maria T. Greig-Custo, Gabriel Lizarraga, Ailyn Peñate, Ranjan Duara
Abstract
Introduction
Culturally fair cognitive assessments sensitive to detecting changes associated with prodromal Alzheimer’s disease are needed.
Methods
Performance of Hispanic and non-Hispanic older adults on the Loewenstein-Acevedo Scale of Semantic Interference and Learning (LASSI-L) was examined in persons with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) or normal cognition. The association between a novel cognitive marker, the failure to recover from proactive semantic interference (frPSI), and cortical thinning was explored.
Results
English-speaking aMCI participants scored lower than cognitively normal participants on all LASSI-L indices, while Spanish-speaking aMCI participants scored lower in learning, frPSI, and delayed recall. Healthy controls obtained equivalent scores on all indices except retroactive semantic interference. English-speaking and Spanish-speaking aMCI participants had equivalent scores except English speaker’s greater vulnerability to frPSI. Across aMCI groups, frPSI was associated with cortical thinning of the entorhinal cortex and precuneus (r = −0.45 to r = 0.52; P < .005).
Discussion
In diverse populations, LASSI-L performance differentiated patients with aMCI from cognitively normal older adults and was associated with thinning in Alzheimer’s disease–prone regions, suggesting its clinical utility.