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The Faces Symbol Test, a newly developed screening instrument to assess cognitive decline related to multiple sclerosis: first results of the Berlin Multi-Centre FST Validation Study

Kantstr. 125, D-10625 Berlin, Germany,schererpw@berlin. sireco. net

I.K. Penner

Department of Cognitive Psychology and Methodology, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

A. Rohr

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

H. Boldt

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

I. Ringel

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

H. Wilke-Burger

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

E. Burger-Deinerth

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

K. Isakowitsch

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

M. Zimmermann

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

S. Zahrnt

Gross-Ziethener-Chaussee 16, 13355 Berlin/Bismarckstr. 70, 10627 Berlin

R. Hauser

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

K. Hilbert

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

K. Tiel-Wilck

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

K. Anvari

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

A. Behringer

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

I. Peglau

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

H. Friedrich

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

A. Plenio

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

G. Benesch

Gross-Ziethener-Chaussee 16, 13355 Berlin/Bismarckstr. 70, 10627 Berlin

R. Ehret

Berlin MS Working Group, Berlin, Germany

I. Nippert

Berlin MS Society, Berlin, Germany

G. Finke

Berlin MS Society, Berlin, Germany

I. Schulz

Emovis GmbH, Berlin, Germany

B. Bergtholdt

Emovis GmbH, Berlin, Germany

S. Breitkopf

Schering Deutschland GmbH, Berlin, Germany

P. Kaskel

Schering AG, Berlin, Germany

F. Reischies

Free University, Berlin, Germany

J. Kugler

Technical University, Dresden, Germany

Reliable, language-independent, short screening instruments to test for cognitive function in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) remain rare, despite the high number of patients affected by cognitive decline. We developed a new, short screening instrument, the Faces Symbol Test (FST), and compared its diagnostic test characteristics with a composite of the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) and the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT), in 108 MS patients and 33 healthy controls. An Informant-Report Questionnaire, a Self-Report Questionnaire, and a neurologist's estimation of the Every Day Life Cognitive Status were also applied to the MS patients. The statistical analyses comprised of a receiver operating characteristic analysis for test accuracy and for confounding variables. The PASAT and DSST composite score estimated that 36.5% of the MS patients had cognitive impairment. The FST estimated that 40.7% of the MS patients were cognitively impaired (sensitivity 84%; specificity 85%). The FST, DSST and PASAT results were significantly correlated with the patients' physical impairment, as measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS). The results suggest that the FST might be a culture-free, sensitive, and practical short screening instrument for the detection of cognitive decline in patients with MS, including those in the early stages. Multiple Sclerosis 2007; 13: 402-411. http://msj.sagepub.com

Key Words: cognitive impairment • Faces Symbol Test • multiple sclerosis • neuropsychology • PASAT • screening test

This version was published on April 1, 2007

Multiple Sclerosis, Vol. 13, No. 3, 402-411 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1352458506069674


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