Behavioural measures in frontotemporal lobar dementia and other dementias: The utility of the frontal behavioural inventory and the neuropsychiatric inventory in a national cohort study

Background: Distinguishing between patients with frontotemporal lobar dementia (FTLD) and other dementing illnesses remains a difficult task for many clinicians. In this study, we aimed to provide further evidence for the construct validity of the frontal behavioural inventory ( FBI) and assess its utility in differentiating FTLD patients from other groups using data from the Canadian Collaborative Cohort of Related Dementias ( ACCORD) study. Method: Baseline scores on the FBI and neuropsychiatric inventory (NPI) were compared among several clinical groups (n = 177). Results: The FBI discriminated a higher percentage of FTLD patients ( > 75% correct classification) from Alzheimer's disease and other groups compared to the NPI (54.2%). Conclusion: This study provides good evidence for convergent validity between the FBI and NPI (r = 0.72), indicating that both measures capture similar psychopathology in this nationwide cohort. Copyright (c) 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel.