Validation of the Brief Assessment of Impaired Cognition and the Brief Assessment of Impaired Cognition Questionnaire for identification of mild cognitive impairment in a memory clinic setting

Objectives The aim of this study was to validate the Brief Assessment of Impaired Cognition (BASIC) and the Brief Assessment of Impaired Cognition Questionnaire (BASIC‐Q) for identification of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in a memory clinic setting. Methods A total of 163 sociodemographically matched patients (MCI, n = 42, and dementia, n = 121) and 83 control participants were included in the study. Two instruments were validated: (a) BASIC, including the components self‐report, informant report, and two brief cognitive tests, and (b) BASIC‐Q, including the components self‐report, informant report, and orientation. BASIC can be administered in 5 minutes and BASIC‐Q in less than 5 minutes. Results A high discriminative validity for MCI vs control participants was found for both BASIC (sensitivity 0.86, specificity 0.89) and BASIC‐Q (sensitivity 0.88, specificity 0.88). In comparison, the MMSE had low sensitivity (0.61) and moderate specificity (0.72). All components of BASIC and BASIC‐Q contributed significantly to differentiate MCI from control participants. The components of BASIC and BASIC‐Q also contributed significantly to differentiate MCI from dementia, except for self‐report, which was identical in the two groups. Conclusions Both BASIC and BASIC‐Q are brief, valid, and effective instruments for identification of patients with possible MCI in a memory clinic setting. Further cross‐validation of the instruments in a general practice or primary care setting is needed.