© 1999 Evidence-Based Mental Health
NINCDS-ADRDA criteria were not able to exclude frontotemporal dementia
Varma AR, Snowden JS, Lloyd JJ, et al. Evaluation of the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria in the differentiation of Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1999 Feb;66:184–8.
Question Are the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria useful for distinguishing between Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD)?
Blinded comparison of NINCDS-ADRDA diagnostic criteria with pathological results.
Neurology department of a hospital in Manchester, UK.
56 patients with pathological confirmation of AD (n=30, 53% women, mean age 56 y, mean duration of disease 3.3 y) or FTD (n=26, 73% men, mean age 57 y, mean duration of disease 3.0 y).
A neurologist applied the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria for probable AD (Mini-Mental State Examination score 
24 points and deficits in memory and 1 other cognitive domains defined by thecriteria statement [ie, orientation, language, praxis, attention, perception, problem solving, activities of daily living, and social function]). The neurologist was blind to results of the diagnostic standard, which was pathological confirmation of AD or FTD.
Sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratios.
The NINCDS-ADRDA criteria had high sensitivity but low specificity for detecting probable AD among patients with either AD or FTD (table
). The table shows results for each cognitive domain.
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View this table: [in a new window]
Test characteristics |
Guy's, King's and St Thomas' Medical School London, UK
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