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42/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 42 out of 100. Cognitive tests and assessment

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a brief instrument developed for the screening of milder forms of cognitive impairment, having surpassed the well-known limitations of the MMSE. The aim of the present study was to validate the MoCA as well as its short version, which was proposed by the NINDS-CSN VCI Harmonization Standards for screening Vascular Dementia (VaD) patients. The results, based on a homogeneous sample of 34 VaD patients, indicate that the MoCA is a psychometrically valid and reliable instrument for cognitive screening in VaD patients, showing excellent discriminant validity.

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

APA 7th

Freitas, S., Simões, M. R., Alves, L., Vicente, M., & Santana, I. (2012). Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA): validation study for vascular dementia. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS. https://doi.org/10.1017/s135561771200077x

Vancouver

Freitas S, Simões MR, Alves L, Vicente M, Santana I. Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA): validation study for vascular dementia. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS. 2012. doi:10.1017/s135561771200077x. PMID: 22676901.

BibTeX

@article{freitas2012-22676901,
  author  = {Freitas, S. and Simões, M. R. and Alves, L. and Vicente, M. and Santana, I.},
  title   = {{Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA): validation study for vascular dementia}},
  journal = {Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS},
  year    = {2012},
  doi     = {10.1017/s135561771200077x},
  pmid    = {22676901},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1017/s135561771200077x}
}

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Key findings

The aim of the present study was to validate the MoCA as well as its short version, which was proposed by the NINDS-CSN VCI Harmonization Standards for screening Vascular Dementia (VaD) patients.
The results, based on a homogeneous sample of 34 VaD patients, indicate that the MoCA is a psychometrically valid and reliable instrument for cognitive screening in VaD patients, showing excellent discriminant validity.
Both the full and short versions of the MoCA had excellent diagnostic accuracy in discriminating VaD patients, exhibiting an area under curve (AUC) higher than the MMSE [AUC(MoCA full version) = .950; 95% IC = .868-.988; AUC(MoCA short version) = .936; 95% IC = .849-.981; AUC(MMSE) = .860; 95% IC = .754-.932].
With a cutoff below 17 on the MoCA full version and 8 on the short version, the results for sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and classification accuracy were superior compared to the MMSE.

Why it matters

This study validated the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and its short version for screening vascular dementia in a sample of 34 patients. It is about a screening tool for vascular dementia, not about treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.

Study details

Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 42/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society: journal h-index 176 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	0 / 12	No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2012 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	0 / 4	Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	0 / 3	Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Randomised / blinded	0 / 2	No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	5 / 7	Cited 148 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	3 / 5	9.2 citations a year over 16 year(s) since 2012
Impact for its field and year	3 / 6	Cited 4.1× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	2 / 6	Cited by 5 other studies in this library
Still being cited	2 / 4	Cited 28 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	3 / 4	Last-listed author Isabel Santana: h-index 65 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	0 / 3	University of Coimbra: institution h-index 515 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 22676901)
Free to read	0 / 2	Behind a paywall — scores zero
Total	42 / 100	—

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