3.3 Functional Assessment staging(FAST)
To validate that the subject met the eligibility criteria for early Stage AD (less than stage 4), criteria from the FAST global scale were Used. FAST stages have a correlation of. 9 with global deterioration Scale (GDS)stages. The reliability of FAST, calculated by intraclass Correlation coefficient,is.87. The PI used the FAST assessment
Criteria during an interview with the subject’s primary caregiver Prior to interviewing the potential subject. During an approxiMately 30 min interview with the potential subject, toverify Admittance criteria. The nurse interviewer observed the subjects
Communication skills, orientation to day and time, and gathered Information regarding self care function (e.g. can they dress and feed themselves),and the amount of assistance needed to manage their daily activities. Behaviors which indicate stages 1-4 scaling include(stage 1 )on difficulty,(stage 2 )forgetting location of objects,(stage 3 )decreased job functioning (evident to coworkers),(stage 4 )decreased ability to perform complex tasks(planning dinner for guests, handling personal finances).