PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

B Lasker

Publications and source records attributed to B Lasker.

3 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1990

The Mini-Mental State Examination in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), a brief test of cognitive function, has been widely used to screen for dementia. We administered the MMSE to 74 community-dwelling patients meeting criteria for probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 74 age- and education-matched controls. Twenty-four patients with AD performed in the nondemented range by scoring above the recommended cutoff point of 23 of a possible 30 on the MMSE. We compared the scores for items of the MMSE in controls and subjects with AD and used logistic regression to model a shorter MMSE that retained the accuracy of the complete test. A score summing tests of recall and orientation for place had similar sensitivity to the full MMSE. Adding a verbal fluency test to the MMSE reduced the error rate by improving the accuracy of diagnosis of patients with AD scoring in the nondemented range.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

The safety and lack of efficacy of vinpocetine in Alzheimer's disease.

Fifteen Alzheimer patients were treated with increasing doses of vinpocetine (30, 45, and 60 mg per day) in an open-label pilot trial during a one-year period. Patients were assessed seven times both on and off drug with: the Buschke Selective Reminding Task, a letter fluency test, a category fluency test, the Boston Naming Test, a cognitive capacity screening examination, and a clinical global impression. Vinpocetine failed to improve cognition on psychometric testing or overall functioning, as measured by the clinical global impression, at any dose tested. Patients showed significant decline in most measures during the course of the study, at the same rate as a matched control group, consistent with progressive dementia. There were no significant side effects from drug therapy. We conclude that vinpocetine is ineffective in improving cognitive deficits and does not slow the rate of decline in individuals with Alzheimer's disease.

Aged↗