A – 16 Verbal Memory Changes in Preclinical Alzheimer’s Disease

Abstract Objective California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) and Logical Memory (LM) scores may detect early risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In this case study, 6 individuals were classified cognitively healthy at Time 1 but not at Time 2. We explored which CVLT and LM scores showed greater change over time and whether CVLT showed greater change than LM. Method Six participants (5 female, 1 male; mean age = 78.6 years at Time 1, 82.6 at Time 2) were selected from a longitudinal aging study at Huntington Medical Research Institutes based on cognitive status change over time. Time 2 diagnoses included one participant with signs of AD, three with mild cognitive impairment—non-amnestic type (MCI-na), and two cognitively impaired who did not meet criteria for MCI. Analyses focused on longitudinal z-score changes. Results The most notable clinical separation emerged in delayed recall z-score changes, especially on LM subtests. The AD case showed a 1.00 SD drop in LM II versus a 0.33 drop for the MCI-na cases. The z-score difference between LM II and LM-I was -0.67 for the MCI-na cases and +0.33 for the AD case, indicating impaired consolidation in the latter. CVLT retention was 75% in MCI-na cases. Recognition z scores showed preserved performance in MCI-na, with mild deficits in AD. Conclusion The z-score trajectories, especially LM delayed recall and within-test decline, appear more sensitive to AD-type impairment compared to CVLT indices. These findings support the value of longitudinal standardized scoring in clinical differentiation.