The Famous Faces Test: A systematic review of its design and potential for detecting early Alzheimer’s disease

Ruth E.  Mark; Daphne M.  Tabak; Demi van den Ende; Daniël Hellemons; Yvonne Brehmer

doi:10.1177/07334648261483940

The Famous Faces Test: A systematic review of its design and potential for detecting early Alzheimer’s disease

Ruth E. Mark^*
, Daphne M. Tabak
, Demi van den Ende
, Daniël Hellemons
, Yvonne Brehmer

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

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Abstract

Objective

Early Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is currently diagnosed using costly and invasive biomarkers. The Famous Faces Test (FFT) may detect (subtle) cognitive impairment earlier than standard neuropsychological tests. This review aimed to identify methodological variation across FFTs and evaluate their ability to detect early AD.

Methods

Following PRISMA guidelines, four databases were searched. Studies were included if an FFT was used, participants were older adults or on the AD-continuum, cognitive performance-based data were reported, and the paper was a journal article or dissertation. Extracted information was clustered into stimulus characteristics, performance assessment, and participant characteristics.

Results

39 of 550 records met the inclusion criteria. Methodological heterogeneity was substantial. FFT performance was predominantly lower in AD-continuum individuals than in controls.

Conclusion

Recommendations for future studies using an FFT are provided, and evidence supporting its potential clinical sensitivity is reviewed. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish its utility in detecting early AD.

Original language	English
Number of pages	14
Journal	Journal of Applied Gerontology
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648261483940
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 31 Aug 2026

Keywords

Alzheimer’s continuum
cognitive assessment
famous faces test (FFT)
memory
normative aging
early (Alzheimer’s) dementia

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10.1177/07334648261483940Licence: CC BY

The Famous Faces TestFinal published version, 1.94 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "The Famous Faces Test: A systematic review of its design and potential for detecting early Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease",

abstract = "Objective Early Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s disease (AD) is currently diagnosed using costly and invasive biomarkers. The Famous Faces Test (FFT) may detect (subtle) cognitive impairment earlier than standard neuropsychological tests. This review aimed to identify methodological variation across FFTs and evaluate their ability to detect early AD. Methods Following PRISMA guidelines, four databases were searched. Studies were included if an FFT was used, participants were older adults or on the AD-continuum, cognitive performance-based data were reported, and the paper was a journal article or dissertation. Extracted information was clustered into stimulus characteristics, performance assessment, and participant characteristics. Results 39 of 550 records met the inclusion criteria. Methodological heterogeneity was substantial. FFT performance was predominantly lower in AD-continuum individuals than in controls. Conclusion Recommendations for future studies using an FFT are provided, and evidence supporting its potential clinical sensitivity is reviewed. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish its utility in detecting early AD.",

keywords = "Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s continuum, cognitive assessment, famous faces test (FFT), memory, normative aging, early (Alzheimer{\textquoteright}s) dementia",

author = "Mark, \{Ruth E.\} and Tabak, \{Daphne M.\} and \{van den Ende\}, Demi and Dani{\"e}l Hellemons and Yvonne Brehmer",

year = "2026",

month = aug,

day = "31",

doi = "10.1177/07334648261483940",

language = "English",

journal = "Journal of Applied Gerontology",

issn = "0733-4648",

publisher = "SAGE Publications Inc.",

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T1 - The Famous Faces Test

T2 - A systematic review of its design and potential for detecting early Alzheimer’s disease

AU - Mark, Ruth E.

AU - Tabak, Daphne M.

AU - van den Ende, Demi

AU - Hellemons, Daniël

AU - Brehmer, Yvonne

PY - 2026/8/31

Y1 - 2026/8/31

N2 - Objective Early Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is currently diagnosed using costly and invasive biomarkers. The Famous Faces Test (FFT) may detect (subtle) cognitive impairment earlier than standard neuropsychological tests. This review aimed to identify methodological variation across FFTs and evaluate their ability to detect early AD. Methods Following PRISMA guidelines, four databases were searched. Studies were included if an FFT was used, participants were older adults or on the AD-continuum, cognitive performance-based data were reported, and the paper was a journal article or dissertation. Extracted information was clustered into stimulus characteristics, performance assessment, and participant characteristics. Results 39 of 550 records met the inclusion criteria. Methodological heterogeneity was substantial. FFT performance was predominantly lower in AD-continuum individuals than in controls. Conclusion Recommendations for future studies using an FFT are provided, and evidence supporting its potential clinical sensitivity is reviewed. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish its utility in detecting early AD.

AB - Objective Early Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is currently diagnosed using costly and invasive biomarkers. The Famous Faces Test (FFT) may detect (subtle) cognitive impairment earlier than standard neuropsychological tests. This review aimed to identify methodological variation across FFTs and evaluate their ability to detect early AD. Methods Following PRISMA guidelines, four databases were searched. Studies were included if an FFT was used, participants were older adults or on the AD-continuum, cognitive performance-based data were reported, and the paper was a journal article or dissertation. Extracted information was clustered into stimulus characteristics, performance assessment, and participant characteristics. Results 39 of 550 records met the inclusion criteria. Methodological heterogeneity was substantial. FFT performance was predominantly lower in AD-continuum individuals than in controls. Conclusion Recommendations for future studies using an FFT are provided, and evidence supporting its potential clinical sensitivity is reviewed. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish its utility in detecting early AD.

KW - Alzheimer’s continuum

KW - cognitive assessment

KW - famous faces test (FFT)

KW - memory

KW - normative aging

KW - early (Alzheimer’s) dementia

U2 - 10.1177/07334648261483940

DO - 10.1177/07334648261483940

M3 - Review article

C2 - 42674542

SN - 0733-4648

JO - Journal of Applied Gerontology

JF - Journal of Applied Gerontology

ER -

The Famous Faces Test: A systematic review of its design and potential for detecting early Alzheimer’s disease

Abstract

Keywords

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