THE BEHAVIOR PATHOLOGY IN ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE RATING-SCALE (BEHAVE-AD)- RELIABILITY AND ANALYSIS OF SYMPTOM CATEGORY SCORES

The interrater reliability of the Behavior Pathology in Alzheimer's Di sease Rating Scale (BEHAVE-AD), a psychiatric rating scale especially designed for the evaluation of behavioral disturbances in dementia pat ients, was studied in both English-speaking US patients and a French-s peaking elderly patient population from France. Additionally, the quan titative relationship between severity of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mean scores on each of the BEHAVE-AD categories and mean total BEHAVE -AD score was determined in a separate study of 140 patients diagnosed as having probable AD. In both reliability studies significant correl ations were obtained for all BEHAVE-AD symptom category scores and for mean total BEHAVE-AD scores. Analysis of BEHAVE-AD scores as a functi on of disease severity demonstrated a non-linear relationship between severity of behavioral symptoms and the global and cognitive advance o f AD. Moreover, score analysis of the BEHAVE-AD indicates that these b ehavioral disturbances become most severe in the moderate and moderate ly severe stages of the illness. The results of these studies provide support for the reliability of the BEHAVE-AD. Additionally, the BEHAVE -AD provides basic knowledge about the nature and severity of the beha vioral symptoms in AD. The latter information may be useful for the de velopment of appropriate and effective psychopharmacologic interventio n strategies for these difficult to manage behaviors. Furthermore, the se results have implications for the methodology of pharmacologic tria ls of putative cognitive-enhancer compounds in AD.