| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2018 | Volume
: 66
| Issue : 6 | Page : 1644--1648 |
A new scoring system and norms for, and the performance of cognitively-unimpaired older adults on the cube copying test
Robert Mathew1, Neelima Renjith2, PS Mathuranath3
1 Department of Neurology, Pushpagiri Institute for Medical Sciences, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
2 Department of Psychology, UC College, Aluva, Kerala, India
3 Department of Neurology, National Institute for Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Robert Mathew
Department of Neurology, Pushpagiri Institute for Medical Sciences, Thiruvalla, Kerala
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0028-3886.246242
Background: Cube copying test is often used as screening test for dementia. However, there is a paucity of an effectively scoring system, and very little is known about how healthy older adults perform on this test. In this study, we present a modified scoring system for the wire-cube copying, evaluate the performance of cognitively unimpaired elderly individuals, and generate norms on community-dwelling older adults.
Materials and Methods: The task consisted of copying a three-dimensional printed cube (i.e., wire-cube) of size 2.5 cm3. The scoring system devised by Maeshma et al. was modified and used. The target population consisted of cognitively normal individuals aged ≥65 years living in a predefined geographical area.
Results: In this study, there were 511 participants (62% females) aged 69 ± 7.2 years. Of the 295 figures available, 51 were rejected. Among the candidates with acceptable cubes, 182 (74.5%) had ≥9 years of education. Of the 51 rejected cubes, 37 (72.5%) participants had <9 years of education. Education was found to be significantly correlated with composite score (P < 0.001) whereas age and sex had no correlation. The total score as well as subgroup scores of the cubes were correlating well with Mini-mental state examination (MMSE) as well as Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE) composite scores (P < 0.0001).
Conclusion: Good correlation was found between composite scores and subscores with most of the ACE parameters. The test can be used as a rapid screening test for dementia in view of its good correlation with ACE composite scores and subscores; it also has the advantage of being independent of culture and language.
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