Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-ndmmz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-09T02:13:16.563Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The reliability and validity of the Norwegian version of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Nursing Home Version (NPI-NH)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 June 2007

Geir Selbæk ,
Øyvind Kirkevold ,
Oskar H. Sommer  and
Knut Engedal
Geir Selbæk*
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Old Age Psychiatric Research, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Ottestad, Norway The Norwegian Centre for Dementia Research, Ullevaal University Hospital, Norway
Øyvind Kirkevold
Affiliation:
The Norwegian Centre for Dementia Research, Vestfold Mental Health Care Trust, Norway Agder University College, Faculty of Health and Sports, Kristiansand, Norway
Oskar H. Sommer
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Old Age Psychiatric Research, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Ottestad, Norway
Knut Engedal
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Old Age Psychiatric Research, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Ottestad, Norway The Norwegian Centre for Dementia Research, Ullevaal University Hospital, Norway University of Oslo, Norway
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Geir Selbæk, Research Centre for Old Age Psychiatric Research, Innlandet Hospital Trust, Post Box 68, 2312 Ottestad, Norway. Phone: +47 9588 3535; Fax: +47 6127 2569. Email: geir.selbaek@aldringoghelse.no.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background: Psychiatric symptoms and behavioral disturbances are highly prevalent in the residents of nursing homes. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) is a commonly used scale for the assessment of such symptoms in diverse settings. We have conducted a study of the reliability and the validity of the Norwegian version of the NPI nursing home version (NPI-NH).

Methods: The reliability study comprised 41 patients. We established inter-rater reliability between raters with various levels of health education using κ statistics. Fifty patients were included in the validity study. The patients were examined by a physician, who also rated the patient's behavior using “behavioral pathology in Alzheimer's disease” (BEHAVE-AD). Subsequently, a research nurse performed a standardized interview using the NPI and the Cornell scale. Concurrent validity of the NPI and the BEHAVE-AD was analyzed.

Results: Internal consistency, as measured by Cronbach's α was above 0.8. Inter-rater reliability was, except for one item, between 0.85 and 1.0 across assessors with different levels of health education. All correlations between the NPI and the BEHAVE-AD were significant, ranging from 0.38 to 0.72. The weakest correlations were between items assessing affective and anxiety symptoms.

Conclusion: The Norwegian version of the NPI-NH is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing psychiatric symptoms and behavioral disturbances in the residents of nursing homes. The investigation of depressive symptoms merits particular attention.

Keywords

neuropsychiatric symptomsnursing homesvalidityreliabilitydementia
Type
Research Article
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 20 , Issue 2 , April 2008 , pp. 375 - 382
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2007

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Alexopoulos, G. S., Abrams, R. C., Young, R. C. and Shamoian, C. A. 1988. Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia. Biological Psychiatry, 23, 271–284.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baiyewu, O. et al. 2003. Behavioral and caregiver reaction of dementia as measured by the neuropsychiatric inventory in Nigerian community residents. International Psychogeriatrics, 15, 399–409.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bidzan, L. and Bidzan, M. 2005. [Reliability of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Homes Polish version]. Psychiatria Polska, 39, 1219–1229.Google ScholarPubMed
Binetti, G. et al. 1998. Behavioral disorders in Alzheimer disease: a transcultural perspective. Archives of Neurology, 55, 539–544.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Boada, M., Tarraga, L., Modinos, G., Lopez, O. L. and Cummings, J. L. 2005. [Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Home version (NPI-NH): Spanish validation]. Neurologia, 20, 665–673.Google ScholarPubMed
Choi, S. H., Na, D. L., Kwon, H. M., Yoon, S. J., Jeong, J. H. and Ha, C. K. 2000. The Korean version of the neuropsychiatric inventory: a scoring tool for neuropsychiatric disturbance in dementia patients. Journal of Korean Medical Science, 15, 609–615.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cohen-Mansfield, J., Marx, M. S. and Rosenthal, A. S. 1989. A description of agitation in a nursing home. Journal of Gerontology, 44, M77–M84.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cummings, J. L., Mega, M., Gray, K., Rosenberg-Thompson, S., Carusi, D. A. and Gornbein, J. 1994. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory: comprehensive assessment of psychopathology in dementia. Neurology, 44, 2308–2314.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Folstein, M. F., Folstein, S. E. and McHugh, P. R. 1975. “Mini-mental state”: a practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 12, 189–198.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fuh, J. L., Liu, C. K., Mega, M. S., Wang, S. J. and Cummings, J. L. 2001. Behavioral disorders and caregivers' reaction in Taiwanese patients with Alzheimer's disease. International Psychogeriatrics, 13, 121–128.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hirono, N. et al. 1997. [Japanese version of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory – a scoring system for neuropsychiatric disturbance in dementia patients]. No To Shinkei, 49, 266–271.Google ScholarPubMed
Hughes, C. P., Berg, L., Danziger, W. L., Coben, L. A. and Martin, R. L. 1982. A new clinical scale for the staging of dementia. British Journal of Psychiatry, 140, 566–572.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kat, M. G., de Jonghe, J. F. M., Aalten, P., Kalisvaart, C. J., Droes, R. M. and Verhey, F. R. J. 2002. [Neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia: Psychometric aspects of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Dutch version]. Tijdschrift voor Gerontologie en Geriatrie, 33, 150–155Google Scholar
Lange, R. T., Hopp, G. A. and Kang, N. 2004. Psychometric properties and factor structure of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Nursing Home version in an elderly neuropsychiatric population. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 19, 440–448. DOI: 10.1002/gps.1108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Leung, V. P., Lam, L. C., Chiu, H. F., Cummings, J. L. and Chen, Q. L. 2001. Validation study of the Chinese version of the neuropsychiatric inventory (CNPI). International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 16, 789–793.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lyketsos, C. G., Steinberg, M., Tschanz, J. T., Norton, M. C., Steffens, D. C. and Breitner, J. C. 2000. Mental and behavioral disturbances in dementia: findings from the Cache County Study on Memory in Aging. American Journal of Psychiatry, 157, 708–714.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Politis, A. M., Mayer, L. S., Passa, M., Maillis, A. and Lyketsos, C. G. 2004. Validity and reliability of the newly translated Hellenic Neuropsychiatric Inventory (H-NPI) applied to Greek outpatients with Alzheimer's disease: a study of disturbing behaviors among referrals to a memory clinic. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 19, 203–208. DOI: 10.1002/gps.1045.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Reisberg, B., Auer, S. R. and Monteiro, I. M. 1996. Behavioral pathology in Alzheimer's disease (BEHAVE-AD) rating scale. International Psychogeriatrics, 8 (Suppl. 3), 301–308.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Selbaek, G., Kirkevold, O. and Engedal, K. 2006. The prevalence of psychiatric symptoms and behavioural disturbances and the use of psychotropic drugs in Norwegian nursing homes. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. DOI: 10.1002/gps.1749.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wood, S. et al. 2000. The use of the neuropsychiatric inventory in nursing home residents: characterization and measurement. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 8, 75–83.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed