Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)
These tests are meant to help us track a patient’s cognition over time and help them if there’s a need - Barbara Messinger-Rapport, MD PhD
HWN Suggests
GPs need subtler tools to diagnose dementia
My 72-year-old husband has been experiencing similar difficulties in recent years – forgetting things he’s always known, forgetting what we’ve just said, forgetting where things are, forgetting how to do complex things. He has seen his GP twice in the last year or so about it. Unfortunately, the standard tool available to GPs seems to be the mini mental state examination, which is a gross, broad-brush assessment that doesn’t pick up smaller changes. On both occasions the GP has decided that his score is within the range of “normal ageing”, and not referred him for specialist services. However, my husband and I both know that his changes are greater than “normal ageing”.
Featured
MMSE calculator
The online MMSE calculator is the medical clinical online app for screening assessment of cognitive decline, including dementia due to Alzheimer's disease and subcortical brain impairment.
Articles of Interest
MMSE vs. MoCA: What You Should Know
Both the MMSE and the MoCA are routine cognitive screening tests rated on a 30-point scale. They are both brief, though the MMSE is a little shorter, taking about seven to eight minutes to administer. The MoCA takes approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Neither test is very detail oriented and both would likely be used only for initial screening.
The Mini-Mental State Examination: pitfalls and limitations
The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) first appeared in 1975 having been developed as a screening tool for patients with dementia and psychiatric disorders in an inpatient setting. Folstein and colleagues did not envisage the global domination that this simple clinical tool would achieve.
Using the Folstein Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE) to explore methodological issues in cognitive aging research
A common measurement scale used in older adults is the Folstein Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE). The MMSE was designed to screen for cognitive impairment and is used often in geriatric research.
Resources
45 Years of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE): A perspective from ibero-america
The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was created by Marshal Folstein et al. in 1975 as an instrument for brief (5–10 min) assessment of mental status in hospitalized patients. It is considered the most widely used test for standardized cognitive assessment in the clinical setting, especially with the elderly population.
Physiopedia
The Mini-mental state examination is used to measure cognitive impairment in older adults. According to Folstein et al, it can be used to screen for cognitive impairment, to estimate the severity of cognitive impairment at a given point in time, to follow the course of cognitive changes in an individual over time, and to document an individual’s response to treatment
