Scale for Assessing Fluctuating Cognition in Dementia Diagnosis
This technology is a scale for clinician assessment of fluctuating cognition that can be used in the diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).
Unmet Need: Reliable and sensitive method for assessing fluctuating cognition
Current methods to clinically diagnose dementia with Lewy bodies have low sensitivity and poor interrater reliability. One of the most important diagnostic criteria to identify and evaluate is fluctuating cognition, which is particularly challenging to assess and relies on subjective clinical judgement. While measuring variations in cortical activity using electroencephalography (EEG) can provide objective data to help detect fluctuating cognition, a structured and objective interview-based method will be more efficient and cost-effective for clinical use.
The Technology: Rating scale to objectively assess the presence and severity of fluctuating cognition in dementia
This rating scale is a two-item questionnaire to assess fluctuations in attention and alertness. The first question is worded to assess the presence of fluctuating consciousness, and the second question is for assessing fluctuating cognitive impairment. If either of the two items are met, then a rating of symptom frequency is made on a scale of 1-4, with 4 being the most frequent, and a rating of symptom duration is made on a scale of 0-4, with 4 being the longest duration. The frequency and duration scores are multiplied to achieve the severity score, from 0-16, with scores >5 indicating severe fluctuating cognition.
This technology has been validated in a study assessing fluctuating cognition in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies or Alzheimer’s disease.
Applications:
- Diagnostic tool for use in differential dementia diagnosis
- Tool for monitoring progression of dementia with Lewy bodies
- Metric for drug screening and development
Advantages:
- Cost-effective and efficient method for assessing fluctuating cognition
- Reliable between independent raters
- Can be used by physician and non-physician raters
- Is sensitive to endorsing patients with dementia with Lewy bodies over Alzheimer’s disease
- Uniquely queries frequency and duration of symptoms
Lead Inventor:
Related Publications:
Tech Ventures Reference:
IR CU22136
Licensing Contact: Dovina Qu