Do Perspectives Matter? Comparing Patient, Informant, and Clinician Subjective Cognitive Decline

Structured AbstractO_ST_ABSBACKGROUNDC_ST_ABSPatient reports are the standard when examining subjective cognitive decline (SCD). Recent research suggests that informant and clinician reports may also be associated with cognition. This study examined differences between patient, informant, and clinician definitions of SCD and their relationship to cognition. METHODSData from 4290 older adults (n=1690 normal controls, NC; n=840 mild cognitive impairment, MCI; n=1760 Alzheimers disease, AD) were examined from the National Alzheimers Coordinating Center. Linear models examined the relationships between SCD status using the three definitions and cognition at baseline and over time. RESULTSIn NC, informant and clinician SCD were associated with worse cognition at baseline, with patient and clinician SCD associated with worse cognition over time. All definitions were associated with worse cognition at baseline and over time in MCI and AD. DISCUSSIONOur findings suggest the importance of examining different SCD definitions, especially the inclusion of clinician SCD.