Original scientific paper

https://doi.org/10.20471/acc.2022.61.01.08

Validation of the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS) in a Large Cohort of Relapsing-Remitting MS Patients

Jelena Drulović orcid.org/0000-0002-4516-3458 ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia; Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Gordana Tončev ; Department of Neurology, Kragujevac Clinical Center, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
Čongor Nadj ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
Dragana Obradović ; Department of Neurology, Military Medical Academy, Medical Faculty, Defense University, Belgrade, Serbia
Jevto Eraković ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro
Šarlota Mesaroš ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia; Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Mirjana Čukić ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro
Dejan Aleksić ; Department of Neurology, Kragujevac Clinical Center, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
Marko Andabaka ; Institute of Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Jovana Ivanović orcid.org/0000-0002-6803-9732 ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Aleksa Jovanović orcid.org/0000-0002-1448-2843 ; Institute of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Marina Kostić ; Department of Neurology, Military Medical Academy, Medical Faculty, Defense University, Belgrade, Serbia
Gorica Marić orcid.org/0000-0003-2739-142X ; Institute of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Aleksandar Marković ; Department of Neurology, Military Medical Academy, Medical Faculty, Defense University, Belgrade, Serbia
Vanja Martinović ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Aleksandra Parojčić ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Stojan Perić orcid.org/0000-0002-2979-556X ; Department of CNS Immune-Mediated Disorders, Department of Neurology, University Clinical Center of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Lorand Sakalaš orcid.org/0000-0002-5128-394X ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
Vesna Suknjaja orcid.org/0000-0003-1491-7912 ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia
Katarina Vesić orcid.org/0000-0001-8861-4987 ; Department of Neurology, Kragujevac Clinical Center, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia
Sofija Vojvodić ; Department of Neurology, Military Medical Academy, Medical Faculty, Defense University, Belgrade, Serbia
Tijana Vuković ; Department of Neurology, Clinical Center of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro
Ralph H. B. Benedict ; Department of Neurology, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Buffalo, NY, USA
Tatjana Pekmezović orcid.org/0000-0001-7978-1409 ; Institute of Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia

Abstract

Cognitive impairment is one of the most frequently reported symptoms in persons
with multiple sclerosis (MS). The Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS)
has been recommended as a standardized international screening and monitoring tool for brief
cognitive assessment. The aim of our study was to assess the reliability and validity of the Serbian version of
the BICAMS. A total of 500 relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients and 69 age-, gender- and education-
matched healthy control (HC) subjects were examined. All participants performed the BICAMS test
battery, which includes the oral version of the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), California Verbal
Learning Test second edition (CVLT-II), and Brief Visuospatial Memory Test Revised (BVMTR). A randomly
selected subset of patients were retested one to three weeks after baseline. Statistically significant differences
between patients and HCs were evident on the SDMT and BVMTR (p<0.001). HCs had higher
CVLT-II scores but this difference did not reach statistical significance (p=0.063). Cognitive impairment,
defined as an abnormal test score on ≥1 subtest, was found in 62.9% of MS patients. There were statistically
significant correlations between BICAMS scores and age, education, EDSS and disease duration in patient
sample. Test-retest reliability was confirmed with Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.70 in all measures.
This study supported the reliability and validity of the Serbian BICAMS, although the CVLT-II version
tested here lacked sensitivity to detect MS compared to healthy volunteers.

Keywords

Multiple sclerosis; BICAMS; Cognition; Cognitive impairment; Validation

Hrčak ID:

280118

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/280118

Publication date:

1.3.2022.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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