Brief Screening for Mild Cognitive Impairment in Elderly Outpatient Clinic: Validation of the Korean Version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment

TLDR

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a brief screening tool with high sensitivity for detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The study evaluated the validity and reliability of the Korean version of the MoCA (MoCA‑K) in elderly outpatients. MoCA‑K, along with the Mini‑Mental State Examination, Clinical Dementia Rating scale, and neuropsychological batteries, was administered to 196 elderly participants (44 with mild Alzheimer’s disease, 37 with MCI, and 115 normal controls). MoCA‑K scores correlated strongly with MMSE and CDR, and a cutoff of 22/23 achieved 89 % sensitivity and 84 % specificity for MCI, with good internal consistency and test‑retest reliability, confirming it as a brief, reliable screening tool for MCI in elderly outpatient settings.

Abstract

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a brief cognitive screening tool with high sensitivity for screening patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The authors examined the validity and reliability of the Korean version of the MoCA (MoCA-K) in elderly outpatients. The MoCA-K, a Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) scale, and neuropsychological batteries were administered to 196 elderly persons (mild Alzheimer's disease [AD] = 44, MCI = 37, normal controls [NC] = 115). MoCA-K scores were highly correlated with those of MMSE and CDR. Using a cutoff score of 22/23, the MoCA-K had an excellent sensitivity of 89% and a good specificity of 84% for screening MCI. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were good. The results obtained show that the MoCA-K is brief, reliable, and suitable for use as a screening tool to screen MCI patients in elderly outpatient clinic settings.