Can an informant questionnaire be used to predict the development of dementia in medical inpatients?

Abstract

Objective To determine whether elderly medical inpatients without dementia who score >3.31 on the short form of the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly (IQCODE) are at an increased risk of developing dementia. Design/participants Twenty-nine patients with an IQCODE score of >3.31 without dementia and 29 age- and sex-matched controls, from an original sample of 201 medical inpatients over 65, were examined 17–24 months after initial assessment. Setting Interviews took place in patients' homes, but all subjects had been recruited while medical inpatients in a general hospital 17–24 months previously. Measures The IQCODE and clinical interview to make DSM-III-R diagnosis of dementia. Results Ten of the study group and one control had developed dementia since the original assessment. Conclusions Non-demented elderly medical inpatients with an admission IQCODE score of >3.31 are more likely to develop dementia than those with an IQCODE score of <3.31. The IQCODE is a sensitive tool for detecting early dementia. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.