Do Perspectives Matter? Comparing Patient, Informant, and Clinician Subjective Cognitive Decline

BACKGROUND: Patient reports are the standard when examining subjective cognitive decline (SCD). Recent research suggests that informant and clinician reports may also be associated with cognition. This study examined differences between patient, informant, and clinician definitions of SCD and their relationship to cognition. METHODS: Data from 4290 older adults (n=1690 normal controls, NC; n=840 mild cognitive impairment, MCI; n=1760 Alzheimer's disease, AD) were examined from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center. Linear models examined the relationships between SCD status using the three definitions and cognition at baseline and over time. RESULTS: In NC, informant and clinician SCD were associated with worse cognition at baseline, with patient and clinician SCD associated with worse cognition over time. All definitions were associated with worse cognition at baseline and over time in MCI and AD. DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest the importance of examining different SCD definitions, especially the inclusion of clinician SCD.