Turkish Journal of Geriatrics 2025 , Vol 28, Issue 4
TURKISH CULTURAL ADAPTATION AND VALIDATION OF THE SYMPTOMS OF EARLY DEMENTIA-11 QUESTIONNAIRE
Oğulcan ÇÖME1, Nezaket SABIR1, Tuğçe YÜKSEL1, Gizem LİMNİLİ1, Nilgün ÖZÇAKAR1
1Dokuz Eylul University, Family Medicine Clinic, Izmir, Türkiye DOI : 10.29400/tjgeri.2025.464 Introduction: Dementia is a major public health challenge worldwide and in Türkiye, where the aging population is rising. Early detection enables timely management and caregiver support. The Symptoms of Early Dementia-11 Questionnaire is a brief informant-based screening tool developed in Japan but has not been validated for Turkish use.

Materials and Method: This methodological, cross-sectional study translated and culturally adapted the Symptoms of Early Dementia-11 Questionnaire into Turkish. Between August and September 2025, 200 community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older were enrolled. Informants completed the questionnaire, and participants underwent the Mini-Mental State Examination. Internal consistency was measured with Cronbach"s alpha and McDonald"s omega. Construct validity was tested with confirmatory factor analysis, and convergent validity with Spearman correlation.

Results: The Turkish version showed strong internal consistency (Cronbach"s alpha 0.834; McDonald"s omega 0.823). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a one-factor model with excellent fit (Comparative Fit Index 1.000, Tucker?Lewis Index 1.001, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation 0.000, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual 0.086). Questionnaire scores were strongly and inversely correlated with Mini-Mental State Examination scores (rho ?0.911, p<0.001). Higher scores occurred among women, those with lower education or socioeconomic status, unmarried participants, and individuals with a family history of dementia (all p<0.01).

Conclusion: The Turkish Symptoms of Early Dementia-11 Questionnaire is brief, culturally appropriate, and reliable, supporting early detection of cognitive decline and timely interventions to reduce the burden of dementia. Keywords : Dementia; Early Diagnosis; Neuropsychological Tests; Validation Study; Aged; Turkey