Background: Psychometric instruments such as the Repeated Battery for the Assessment\nof Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) are commonly used under conditions for which they were\nnot developed or validated. They may then generate troublesome data that could conceal potential\nfindings. Methods: Based on a previously published refinement of the RBANS, we reanalyzed the\ndata on 303 patients from two National Institutes of Health (NIH) trails in Parkinson�s disease and\ncontrasted the results using the original versus refined scores. Results: Findings from the original\nRBANS scores were inconsistent; however, use of the refined scores produced potential findings that\nwere in agreement with independent reports. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that, for negative\ntrials using instrument scores as primary outcomes, it is possible to rescue potential findings. The key\nto this new strategy is to validate and refine the instrument for the specific disease and conditions\nunder study and then to reanalyze the data. This study offers a demonstration of this new strategy\nfor general approaches.
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