ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the possibility of “pre-clinical” detection of Alzheimer-type Dementia (AD). Currently, the criteria for the clinical diagnosis of AD require observable deficits in cognitive functioning. It shows that at the present time we are unable to make this discrimination due to: Diagnostic criteria which are meant for a later stage of dementia; the use of measurement instruments which are sensitive only to gross cognitive impairment; and Substantial flaws in research methodology. The chapter argues that only longitudinal comparison of individuals’ functioning against baseline data can permit accurate documentation of cognitive changes in still relatively preserved individuals. There is a remarkable similarity between early symptoms of AD and changes associated with normal aging and dementias of different etiology. Problems with early identification of AD are further exacerbated by substantial flaws in the research methodology used in studies of the cognitive sequelae of AD.
