Background: The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) has not been validated in the Lebanese population and no normative data exist at the national level. Objective: To evaluate the reliability and validity of an Arabic version of MMSE developed by the "Groupe de Travail sur les Démences de l'Université Saint Joseph" (A-MMSE(GTD-USJ)) and to provide normative data by gender, age, and education in adults over 55. Methods: Study design: national cross-sectional survey. Study population: 1,010 literate community-dwelling Lebanese residents aged 55 and above. Outcomes: reproducibility, internal consistency, sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, and area under the curve of the A-MMSE(GTD-USJ) for the detection of cognitive impairment using the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) as the gold standard. Normative data were established from 720 healthy adults. A-MMSE(GTD-USJ) scores corresponding to the 5th, 10th, 15th, and 50th percentiles were identified according to gender, age, and education. Results: Intra-rater and inter-rater test-retest score correlations were 0.89 and 0.72, respectively. Cronbach alpha coefficient for internal consistency of the A-MMSE(GTD-USJ) was 0.71. A threshold value of 23 provided a sensitivity of 80% and a specificity of 89.4%. The area under the curve was 0.92. A-MMSE(GTD-USJ) scores increased with education and decreased with age. Women had significantly lower scores than men. Normative data for A-MMSE(GTD-USJ) stratified by gender, age, and education were generated.

Objectives: In the absence of a simple validated instrument to screen for cognitive impairment among illiterate Lebanese older adults, the aims of this study were to validate an Arabic version of the Test of Nine Images (A-TNI93) adapted by the Working Group on Dementia at Saint Joseph University: Groupe de Travail sur les Démences de l’Univesité Saint Joseph (GTD-USJ) for illiterate older Lebanese and to establish normative data. Method: A national population-based sample of 332 community-dwelling illiterate Lebanese aged 55 years and older was administered the A-TNI93 (GTD-USJ) scoring free and overall recall. The sample is part of a larger national sample (1342 participants) used to validate an Arabic version of the Mini-Mental State Examination already reported. Reproducibility, sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve of the A-TNI93 (GTD-USJ) scoring to detect cognitive impairment according to Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) as the gold standard were measured. Normative data were established among 188 cognitively normal participants. Results: A threshold score of six on free recall (FR) provided a sensitivity of 66.7% and a specificity of 90.5%. The area under the curve was 0.93. By taking either scores, that is, a FR ≤ 6 or a total recall ≤ 8, the A-TNI93 (GTD-USJ) slightly improved dementia case detection with a sensitivity of 70.8% and a specificity of 88%. Normative data illustrate the distribution of cognitive performance among illiterate older adults. Conclusions: Compared to the CDR requiring physician’s competence, the A-TNI93 (GTD-USJ) is a valid Arabic adaptation to screen for cognitive impairment among illiterate Lebanese older adults.

Oral health indicators are usually collected to alert for the presence of infectious diseases, but the impact of poor oral health on the nutritional status of older people with dementia is often neglected. This study aims to explore the relationship between the number of posterior dental functional units (PFUs) and the anthropometric measure of malnutrition, the mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), in older people with dementia while controlling for other variables, and to analyze whether the number of PFUs is considered when adjusting the texture of the food provided at mealtimes. A total of 103 individuals who were 70 years or older with dementia were recruited from seven institutions. Cognitive impairment was assessed using the Mini Mental State Examination. Data were collected from medical records (sociodemographic characteristics, presence of chronic diseases, prescribed medications, results of serum albumin level), as well as questionnaires (type of feeding routes, type of food texture, supplements intake, Activity of Daily Living index), clinical examinations (MUAC), and oral health parameters (PFUs, oral dryness, oral hygiene). MUAC was the dependent outcome variable. MUAC was associated with the number of PFUs (p = 0.032); participants with PFU ≤ 4 were 7.5 times more likely to have MUAC < 21 cm than others. Other associations were found between MUAC and albumin level (OR = 12.5; p = 0.001), modified food texture (OR = 4.2; p = 0.035), and length of institutional stay (OR = 5.2; p = 0.033); however, the type of oral feeding was not significantly related to the number of PFUs (p = 0.487) so there is an inadequate correlation between food texture and oral health status. Similar to MUAC, the number of PFUs could be an oral anthropometric criterion that is recorded during routine hygiene care to alert for the risk of malnutrition and the inappropriate choice of food texture in older individuals with dementia.

Background: Verbal fluency tasks are frequently used for neuropsychological assessment in clinical practice and research. It consists of two tasks namely category and letter fluency tests. Objective: To determine normative values in category (animals, vegetables, fruits) and letter fluency [Mim () “M”, Alif () “A”, Baa () “B”] tasks in Arabic language in 60 s. Methods: This study was a cross-sectional national survey and included 859 community-dwelling, cognitively intact Lebanese residents aged ≥55 years. Norms were presented according to age (55–64 years, 65–74 years, ≥75 years), sex and level of education (illiterate, no diploma, primary certificate, baccalaureate or higher). Results: Level of education had the most significant positive effect on verbal fluency tasks performance amongst Lebanese older adults. The negative effect of older age was more prominent in the category fluency task compared to the letter fluency task. Women outperformed men in vegetables and fruits categories. Conclusion: This study provides clinicians with normative scores of category and letter fluency tests, which can be used for neuropsychological assessment of older Lebanese patients being evaluated for cognitive disorders.

No abstract