Objective: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a general cognitive
screening tool that has shown sensitivity in detecting mild levels of
cognitive impairment in various clinical populations. Although mood
dysfunction is common in referrals to memory clinics, the influence of mood
on the MoCA has to date been largely unexplored. Method: In this study, we examined the impact of mood dysfunction on the
MoCA using a memory clinic sample of individuals with depressive symptoms
who did not meet criteria for a neurodegenerative disease. Results: Half of the group with depressive symptoms scored below the
MoCA-suggested cutoff for cognitive impairment. As a group, they scored
below healthy controls, but above individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and
frontotemporal dementia. A MoCA subtask analysis revealed a pattern of
executive/attentional dysfunction in those with depressive symptoms. Conclusions: This observed negative impact of depressive symptomatology on the
MoCA has interpretative implications for its utility as a cognitive
screening tool in a memory clinic setting.