A - 123 Word List Task Outperforms Cognitive Screener in Neurocognitive Disorder Detection

Abstract Objective The California Verbal Learning Test II (CVLT II) demonstrated utility in characterizing neurocognitive disorders (Webber et al., 2018). The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is considered the most widely used assessment tool in screening for possible neurocognitive disorders (Tsoi et al., 2015). The purpose of this study was to establish which cognitive assessment tool, MMSE or CVLT II, better-identified individuals at risk for neurocognitive impairment. Method Older adults (n = 113; age 60–90, M = 73.53, SD = 7.16) from the general community received a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation. We performed ROC curve analysis using SPSS to assess the predictive performance of two test variables, MMSE (M = 26.37; SD = 3.68) and CVLT LDFR (M = −0.14; SD = 1.45), in predicting whether the participant has a neurocognitive disorder. Results ROC curve analysis demonstrated that both variables, MMSE and CVLT LDFR, significantly predicted the presence of a neurocognitive disorder, with AUC values of 0.84 and 0.89, respectively. The variable CVLT LDFR shows a higher AUC value, indicating slightly better discriminatory power to the variable MMSE. Conclusions CVLT II’s long-delay free recall trial directly assesses verbal memory retention and recall. Memory impairment, particularly delayed recall deficits, is a hallmark feature of many neurocognitive disorders. This specificity aligns with the involvement of the hippocampus, a brain region crucial for memory consolidation, which is often dysfunctional in neurocognitive disorders. Therefore, a test targeting this aspect of memory function may offer greater sensitivity and specificity in detecting neurocognitive impairments compared to more general cognitive screening tools like the MMSE.