Assessment of cognitive functions in patients with multiple sclerosis applying the normative values of the Rao’s brief repeatable battery in the Portuguese population

Abstract

Abstract Background The Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Tests (BRBN-T) is one of the most sensitive and used measures for detecting cognitive impairment in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Objective The aim of this study was to adapt and validate this battery to the Portuguese population of MS patients. Methods The Portuguese version of the BRBN-T was applied to a stratified control national sample of 326 individuals considering sex, age, educational level and geographic location and also a clinical sample of 115 MS patients from several national hospitals. Through the exploration of its psychometrics properties, the Portuguese BRBN-T norms were produced. Results The normative data is presented as a regression-based formula to adjust test scores for gender, education and age, and the results reveal the BRBN-T has the ability to differentiate between MS patients and healthy participant’s cognitive performance. Conclusion This study demonstrated in our clinical population a good ability to detect cognitive impairment. Its clearly contributed to reinforcing the neuropsychological assessment in Portugal in patients with MS, by providing a new set of instruments, which can be used in the clinical practice, and in future studies. Moreover, it will allow a rigorous and precise support in relation to neuropsychological assessment for future longitudinal studies and clinical trials.

Keywords

• Multiple sclerosis
• Cognition
• Neuropsychological test
• Brief repeatable battery of neuropsychological tests
• Normative data
• Cognitive assessment