Unlocking the Value of Neuropsychological Assessments in Rehabilitation: Perspectives from Persons with Dementia and Their Caregivers

IF 1.5 Q3 MEDICINE, RESEARCH & EXPERIMENTAL

Current Therapeutic Research-clinical and Experimental Pub Date : 2025-01-01 DOI:10.1016/j.curtheres.2025.100781

Takako Yoshimura , Aiko Osawa , Shiinchiro Maeshima , Iikue Ueda , Koki Kawamura , Masaki Kamiya , Naoki Itoh , Hidenori Arai

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Purpose

Various neuropsychological or cognitive assessments are often conducted before rehabilitation to ascertain patients’ function, disability, and environment. However, adequate assessments are not conducted for persons with dementia under the assumption that assessments would burden them. Therefore, this study investigated the perceptions of persons with dementia and their family caregivers regarding cognitive function assessments during hospital rehabilitation and reconsidered the significance of such assessments according to the opinions of those involved.

Methods

This cross-sectional observational study was conducted over a 3-month period at a hospital-based rehabilitation center. We administered a semi-structured questionnaire to 31 older persons with dementia (13 men and 18 women; mean age [± SD]: 77 [± 5.7] (range: 66–87 years); mean years of education [± SD]: 12 [± 2.3]; (range: 9–16 years); Alzheimer's disease: 15; mild cognitive impairment (MCI): 15; corticobasal degeneration: 1) and 49 family caregiver dyads (24 men and 25 women, mean age [± SD]: 67 [± 11] years; age range: 46–90 years). The data were interpreted by employing descriptive statistics, and the χ², Fisher's exact, and Kruskal–Wallis tests.

Findings

Both groups acknowledged the value of neuropsychological assessments, with 94% (95% CI 84.9–100%) of persons with MCI/dementia and 83% (95% CI 73.3–94.0%) of their family caregivers linking them directly to enhanced treatment and care quality. Their positive attitudes were significantly associated with the belief that such evaluations are integral for personalizing and optimizing rehabilitation strategies.

Implications

Most individuals with MCI/dementia and their caregivers value detailed neuropsychological assessments for understanding rehabilitation needs, highlighting the importance of integrating comprehensive evaluations into dementia care. However, the single-center nature of our study limits generalizability. Future research with diverse participants is needed to develop scalable, inclusive rehabilitation strategies.

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释放神经心理学评估在康复中的价值：来自痴呆症患者及其照顾者的观点

目的在康复前经常进行各种神经心理学或认知评估，以确定患者的功能、残疾和环境。然而，没有对痴呆症患者进行充分的评估，认为评估会给他们带来负担。因此，本研究调查了痴呆症患者及其家庭照顾者对医院康复期间认知功能评估的看法，并根据相关人员的意见重新考虑这种评估的意义。方法本横断面观察性研究在一家医院康复中心进行了为期3个月的研究。我们对31名老年痴呆症患者(13名男性和18名女性；平均年龄[±SD]: 77[±5.7]（范围：66 ~ 87岁）；平均受教育年限[±SD]: 12[±2.3]；（范围：9-16岁）；阿尔茨海默病：15人；轻度认知障碍（MCI）： 15；皮质基底变性：1例)和49例家庭照顾者(男性24例，女性25例，平均年龄[±SD]: 67[±11]岁；年龄范围：46-90岁)。采用描述性统计、χ2、Fisher精确检验和Kruskal-Wallis检验对数据进行解释。两组都承认神经心理学评估的价值，94% （95% CI 84.9-100%）的轻度认知障碍/痴呆患者和83% （95% CI 73.3-94.0%）的家庭照顾者直接将其与提高治疗和护理质量联系起来。他们的积极态度与相信这些评估是个性化和优化康复策略的组成部分显著相关。大多数MCI/痴呆患者及其护理人员重视详细的神经心理学评估，以了解康复需求，强调将综合评估纳入痴呆护理的重要性。然而，本研究的单中心性质限制了通用性。未来的研究需要不同的参与者来制定可扩展的、包容性的康复策略。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Current Therapeutic Research-clinical and Experimental 医学-药学

CiteScore

3.50

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

3 months

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