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Validation of the NPI-Q, a brief clinical form of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory
Kaufer DI, Cummings JL, Ketchel P, Smith V, MacMillan A, Shelley T, Lopez OL, DeKosky ST.. The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences, 2000-01-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) is a validated clinical instrument for evaluating psychopathology in dementia. The authors developed a brief questionnaire form of the NPI (NPI-Q), intended for use in routine clinical practice, and cross-validated it with the NPI in 60 Alzheimer's patients. Test-retest reliability of the NPI-Q was acceptable. The prevalence of analogous symptoms reported on the NPI and NPI-Q differed on average by 5%; moderate or severe symptom ratings differed by less than 2%. The NPI-Q provides a brief, reliable, informant-based assessment of neuropsychiatric symptoms and associated caregiver distress that may be suitable for use in general clinical practice.
Key findings
- The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) is a validated clinical instrument for evaluating psychopathology in dementia.
- The authors developed a brief questionnaire form of the NPI (NPI-Q), intended for use in routine clinical practice, and cross-validated it with the NPI in 60 Alzheimer's patients.
- Test-retest reliability of the NPI-Q was acceptable.
- The prevalence of analogous symptoms reported on the NPI and NPI-Q differed on average by 5%; moderate or severe symptom ratings differed by less than 2%.
- The NPI-Q provides a brief, reliable, informant-based assessment of neuropsychiatric symptoms and associated caregiver distress that may be suitable for use in general clinical practice.
Why it matters
This study validated a brief questionnaire form of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory for assessing behavioral symptoms in Alzheimer's patients. It is a reliable assessment tool for clinical practice, not a treatment, so it does not directly affect curing or preventing the disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 56/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Neuropsychiatry: journal h-index 155 (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 | 2000 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| 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 | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,924 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 68.7 citations a year over 28 year(s) since 2000 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 95 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 426 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Steven T. DeKosky: h-index 132 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, Los Angeles: institution h-index 1,923 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 11001602) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 56 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Kaufer, D. I., Cummings, J. L., Ketchel, P., Smith, V., MacMillan, A., Shelley, T., et al. (2000). Validation of the NPI-Q, a brief clinical form of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory. The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences. https://doi.org/10.1176/jnp.12.2.233
Vancouver
Kaufer DI, Cummings JL, Ketchel P, Smith V, MacMillan A, Shelley T, et al. Validation of the NPI-Q, a brief clinical form of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory. The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences. 2000. doi:10.1176/jnp.12.2.233. PMID: 11001602.
BibTeX
@article{kaufer2000-11001602,
author = {Kaufer, D. I. and Cummings, J. L. and Ketchel, P. and Smith, V. and MacMillan, A. and Shelley, T. and Lopez, O. L. and DeKosky, S. T.},
title = {{Validation of the NPI-Q, a brief clinical form of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory}},
journal = {The Journal of neuropsychiatry and clinical neurosciences},
year = {2000},
doi = {10.1176/jnp.12.2.233},
pmid = {11001602},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1176/jnp.12.2.233}
}
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