The Utility of a Brief Memory Screen in the Diagnosis of Mild Memory Impairment in the Elderly: A Preliminary Study

This study evaluated the utility of the Florida Brief Memory Screen (FBMS), a new memory screening measure developed for Spanish-speaking and English-speaking subjects, which takes only 3-4 minutes to administer.

The FBMS was administered to 25 patients with probable Alzheimer disease, 23 patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment, and 80 cognitively normal elderly.

The FBMS evidenced good test-retest reliability and high correlation with standard measures of memory. In receiver operating characteristic analyses, the FBMS correctly classified 100% of patients with probable Alzheimer disease and 87.5% of normal elderly subjects. Sensitivity and specificity for patients with amnesic mild cognitive impairment was 82.6% and 87.5%, respectively. Performance on the FBMS was generally independent of the effects of age, education, or primary language.

The FBMS is a reliable and a valid measure when screening for memory impairment in the elderly and when determining whether a more extensive evaluation is warranted.