Clinical Assessment
To intervene early in Alzheimer's disease (AD), the cause of cognitive impairment should be identified as soon as symptoms occur.1,2
Brief, objective tools can help you better detect the early signs of cognitive impairment5,6
With new therapies focusing earlier in the disease continuum, assessing cognitive impairment as early as possible is more important than ever.3
Did you know?
The Medicare Annual Wellness Visit requires a patient evaluation to assess cognitive impairment, and the AAN guidelines recommend using a brief, validated cognitive assessment tool and obtaining a cognitive history from the patient and informant to identify any concerns.4
Learn more about Medicare coverage of cognitive assessment servicesImplementing sensitive screening measures more frequently can help to proactively assess the presence of MCI or dementia symptoms, which may identify patients who require further diagnostic workup for AD.2
Even before referral to a specialist, nonspecialists can initiate an evaluation of cognitive impairment or dementia with the help of cognitive assessments such as the Mini-Cog, GPCOG, MoCA, or SLUMS.5
The following tests are representative only; alternative tools are available and can be used at the discretion of the clinician.
Mini-Cog©5,7,8
Summary
Composite of 3-word recall and clock drawing; validated in multiple languages in primary care setting; has been found to be more sensitive than MMSE for detecting mild cognitive impairment
Duration
2-4 min*
GPCOG5,7
Summary
Patient section assesses aspects of orientation, awareness, and memory. Informant section compares patient’s current and previous functioning
Duration
2 to 5 mins (patient);
1 to 3 mins (informant)*
MoCA2,9
Summary
1-page, 30-point test; assesses 8 cognitive domains through 13 tasks; available in 30 languages; has been found to be more sensitive than MMSE in assessing memory, visuospatial, executive, language function, and orientation to time and place
Duration
10 min
SLUMS10
Summary
30-point, 11-item scale comprising various cognitive assessments; tasks assess attention, numeric calculation, immediate and delayed recall, animal naming, digit span, clock drawing, figure recognition/size differentiation, and immediate recall of facts from a paragraph
Duration
7 min
If cognitive impairment is detected, it is important to either evaluate the cause via a full diagnostic workup or refer your patient to a specialist.2
Following referral to a dementia specialist by a primary care provider, patients may undergo biomarker testing and further cognitive, functional, and behavioral tests to confirm a diagnosis of AD.2
“With the diagnosis, now I know what’s happening to me.”