Cognitive testing in Scottish memory clinics
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Cognitive testing in Scottish memory clinics: comparison of the RUDAS and the MoCA
IRAS ID
323661
Contact name
Tara Metcalfe
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research Governance, University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 21 days
Research summary
The population of the UK has been growing for the last 20 years and migration is considered the biggest driver of growth in Scotland. Due to advances in healthcare, people are living longer and the incidence of dementia has increased. Consequently, there is a need for cognitive assessment tools that are appropriate to detect dementia in this ageing and diverse population. This presents a challenge for commonly used dementia screening tools which are biased towards certain languages, cultures, and ethnicities. Therefore, there is a need for tests that can detect dementia in multi-cultural populations.
The Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) is a brief screening test for cognitive impairment which was developed to minimise the effects of language, culture, and education on test performance. It has been shown to be valid across cultures and effectively translated to at least 16 languages, but it has not yet been validated in the UK. If the RUDAS is shown to be a reliable measure which correlates well with established dementia screening tools for an older adult population, this easily portable and administered tool could be utilised in clinical practice to facilitate more equitable access to healthcare. Thus, this project aims to evaluate how older adults in Scotland perform on the RUDAS compared with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). It also aims to evaluate how scores on both assessment tools are influenced by demographic and health-related variables.
Participants will be recruited from a clinical sample of older adults (aged 65+) referred for assessment of cognitive impairment in NHS memory clinics. Recruitment will be open for a period of one year. Participation involves completing the RUDAS, MoCA and a mood questionnaire during a 30 minute appointment. Relevant health information will be retrieved from NHS electronic health records and performance on both cognitive tests will be compared.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 02
REC reference
23/SS/0020
Date of REC Opinion
1 Mar 2023
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion