Centre for Policy on Ageing



The Clock Drawing Test in primary care — sensitivity in dementia detection and specificity against normal and depressed elderly
Author(s)	Michael Kirby, Aisling Denihan, Irene Bruce
Journal title	International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, vol 16, no 10, October 2001
Pages	pp 935-940
Keywords	Dementia ; Depression ; Assessment procedures for mental patients ; General practice ; Ireland.
Annotation	The Clock Drawing Test (CDT) has been proposed as a quick and simple means whereby cognitive impairment may be detected in older people. Using data from their 1997 Dublin study, "Mental disorders among the community-dwelling elderly", the authors examine the sensitivities and specificities of the CDT, with particular emphasis on the effect of depression on CTD specificity. The sensitivity of CDT in detecting dementia in the general community was 76%; higher sensitivity and specificity were achieved with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). However, the use of the CDT in detecting dementia is likely to be more relevant in the primary care context than in specialist settings. Community-based late life depression does not appear to alter the specificity of the CDT. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-011115201 A
Classmark	EA: ENR: DA:4C: L5: 763
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.