Sensitivity and Specificity of Conventional Clinical Evaluation Compared with Neuropathologic Confirmation of Presence or Absence of AD
| No. of patients | Major findings | Comments | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 94 AD, 40 Non-AD | Sens = 83%, Spec = 55% Prob AD Sens = 85%, Spec = 50% Prob AD + Poss AD | Patients with new onset (<1 y) of symptoms of dementia when first seen; diagnoses based on average follow-up of 3.0 y | (10) |
| 80 AD, 24 Non-AD | Sens = 49%, Spec = 100% Prob AD Sens = 96%, Spec = 61% Prob AD + Poss AD | 40% of patients lived in long-term care facilities. Diagnoses based on annual assessments from time of referral until death. Followed for average of 2.3 y, at which time majority of patients were moderately or severely demented | (63) |
| 68 AD, 12 Non-AD | Sens = 50%, Spec = 70% Prob AD | Diagnoses based on annual assessments from time of referral until death | (64) |
Ref. = reference; AD = cognitively impaired secondary to AD; Non-AD = no AD identified on neuropathologic examination; Sens = sensitivity with respect to correctly identifying presence of AD; Spec = specificity with respect to correctly specifying that AD is absent; Prob AD = diagnosis of probable AD by National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke–Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association (NINCDS–ADRDA) criteria; Poss AD = diagnosis of possible AD by NINCDS–ADRDA criteria.