The Agitation in Alzheimer’s Screener for Caregivers (AASC ^® ), a screening tool for agitation: a plain language summary

Plain Language SummaryWhat is agitation?Agitation is a recognized group of symptoms that may include excessive movement, irritability, or verbal or physical aggression. Agitation is common in people living with Alzheimer’s dementia.What is the Agitation in Alzheimer’s Screener for Caregivers, or AASC®?The AASC® is a screening tool created to help caregivers and healthcare professionals discuss and recognize agitation symptoms in people living with Alzheimer’s dementia. In this summary, we review the development and evaluation of the AASC®.What was the key takeaway?Agitation is often under-recognized or under-discussed during routine care. The AASC® was developed and tested in collaboration with healthcare professionals and caregivers of people living with Alzheimer’s dementia, and aligned with internationally recognized criteria for agitation. The AASC® is a brief and easy-to-use screening tool that helps caregivers recognize agitation symptoms in everyday life.What were the main conclusions reported by researchers?The AASC® is a reliable screening tool for identifying agitation symptoms in people living with Alzheimer’s dementia, which may help caregivers recognize these symptoms early at home and discuss them with healthcare professionals. Used routinely, the AASC® can support earlier conversations, earlier clinical assessment, and timely diagnosis and management of agitation, helping to ease the day-to-day impact on the person living with Alzheimer’s dementia and their family.How to say (download PDF and double click sound icon to play sound)…AASC®: askAgitation: aj-uh-TAY-shnAlzheimer’s dementia: ALLZ-high-muhr’s duh-MEN-shuhInternational Psychogeriatric Association: in-ter-NASH-un-al sigh-koh-jair-ee-AT-rick uh-sow-see-AY-shunNeuropsychiatric: nyoor-oh-sigh-kee-AT-rickPredictive validity: pruh-DIK-tiv vuh-LID-uh-teeQualitative: KWAH-luh-tay-tivQuantitative: KWON-tuh-tay-tivAgitation: A recognized group of symptoms that may include excessive movement, irritability, or verbal or physical aggression.Alzheimer’s dementia: The stage of Alzheimer’s disease when symptoms of dementia, such as problems with memory, thinking, language, and behavior, become noticeable and make daily life significantly more challenging.Alzheimer’s disease: A physical illness that causes damage to the brain.Evaluation: A structured process to calculate or judge how well something is working and decide its quality, importance, or value.Screening tool: A brief questionnaire, checklist, or test that is used to help caregivers and healthcare professionals identify those who might need further testing. Note: A screening tool does not provide a diagnosis or confirm a specific condition. Instead, it can help caregivers and healthcare professionals decide who might need a more thorough evaluation to make a diagnosis.This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article.View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-textLink to original article here