The Mini-Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination: a new assessment tool for dementia

Background/aims: We developed and validated the Mini-Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (M-ACE) in dementia patients. Comparisons were also made with the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE).

Method: The M-ACE was developed using Mokken scaling analysis in 117 dementia patients [behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), n = 25; primary progressive aphasia (PPA), n = 49; Alzheimer's disease (AD), n = 34; corticobasal syndrome (CBS), n = 9] and validated in an independent sample of 164 dementia patients (bvFTD, n = 23; PPA, n = 82; AD, n = 38; CBS, n = 21) and 78 controls, who also completed the MMSE.

Results: The M-ACE consists of 5 items with a maximum score of 30. Two cut-offs were identified: (1) ≤25/30 has both high sensitivity and specificity, and (2) ≤21/30 is almost certainly a score to have come from a dementia patient regardless of the clinical setting. The M-ACE is more sensitive than the MMSE and is less likely to have ceiling effects.

Conclusion: The M-ACE is a brief and sensitive cognitive screening tool for dementia. Two cut-offs (25 or 21) are recommended.