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American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias logoLink to American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias
. 2009 Apr-May;24(2):163–168. doi: 10.1177/1533317508329480

An Itemized Approach to Assessing Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms in Dementia

Jennifer L Gallo 1, Kara S Schmidt 2, David J Libon 3
PMCID: PMC10846199  PMID: 19129546

Abstract

In an effort to obtain more detailed clinical information regarding behavioral and psychology symptoms in dementia, we submitted an existing, comprehensive measure of behavioral and psychology symptoms in dementia (Neuropsychiatric Inventory) to an alternate itemized scoring system. One hundred twenty-four caregivers of patients with dementia (mean Mini-Mental State Examination = 22.6) rated the frequency of individual symptoms across all domains of the measure. Internal reliability and factor structures for all domains were analyzed to assess the stability of this scoring approach. Internal consistency alphas for each domain ranged from .57 to .91. Alpha reliability for the total inventory was .96. Results indicate an itemized approach to assessing behavioral and psychological symptoms in dementia among patients with mild-to-moderate dementia can be reliable, has the power to capture multiple features of neuropsychiatric symptoms, and can produce a rich neurobehavioral profile adding valuable information to the diagnosis and treatment of these patients.

Keywords: Alzheimer disease, vascular dementia, BPSD, neurobehavioral symptoms

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Contributor Information

Jennifer L. Gallo, Department of Psychology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, jlg37@drexel.edu .

Kara S. Schmidt, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.

David J. Libon, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

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