This study examined the usefulness of the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment
Scale-Late Version (ADAS-L) for assessing cognitive and behavioral
impairment in geriatric schizophrenic patients. Subjects were 339 geriatric
schizophrenic inpatients. Discriminant function analyses compared the
Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) with the ADAS-L as independent
variables predicting the level of impairment on the criterion measure, the
Clinical Dementia Rating. The ADAS-L surpassed the MMSE at correctly
distinguishing severe to profound impairment; the MMSE was superior for
identifying absent or questionable impairment. Findings provide evidence
for the concurrent validity of the ADAS-L as an instrument for measuring
impairment in geriatric schizophrenic inpatients.Abstract Teaser