Dementia Questionnaire for People with Learning Disabilities

The DLD (formerly known as DMR) is a screening tool which measures specific cognitive deterioration as a result of dementia, as well as functional deterioration as a result of dementia severe sensory or psychiatric problems.

Dementia is hard to determine in people with intellectual disabilities. With the DLD it is possible to assess dementia at an early stage.

Features

The DLD, an informant-based questionnaire, consists of 50 items and eight subscales:

• Short-term memory
• Long-term memory
• Orientation
• Speech
• Practical skills
• Mood
• Activity and interest
• Behavioural disturbance

Questionnaire is provided with a simple linear score system in which the items have three response categories: 0 = no deficit, 1 point = moderate deficit, 2 points = severe deficit.

Combined scores on the first three subscales (Short-term memory, Long-term memory and Orientation) are indicated as the Sum of Cognitive Scores (SCS). Combined scores on subscales 4 through to 8 (Speech, Practical skills, Mood, Activity and Interest, and Behavioural disturbance) as the Sum of Social Scores (SOS).

It is advised to routinely perform a first scoring of the DLD before any functional deterioration is observed, because longitudinal judgement of DLD scores provide the most reliable diagnosis.