Abstract
Discrepancies were examined in diagnostic outcome between a monodisciplinary approach and a multidisciplinary, criteria-based approach in patients referred to a university memory clinic. Of 278 patients not fulfilling dementia criteria, 19 had been previously diagnosed as demented (specificity: 0.93). In 60 of 152 demented patients, dementia had not been diagnosed before (sensitivity: 0.61). Underreporting was frequent for mildly demented patients and for patients with coexisting depressive symptoms. In patients referred by psychiatrists, sensitivity rates for dementia and Alzheimer's disease were low; in patients referred by neurologists, depression often went unreported. Results underscore the need for more frequent use of integrated multidisciplinary services for cognitively disturbed patients.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 78-85 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences |
| Volume | 5 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 1993 |