Table 1.
Diagnostic assessment for dementia.
| (i) Initial exam |
| (signs to look for) |
| Poor orientation |
| Increased forgetfulness |
| Confusion in ADLs and IADLs |
| Language perseverations and circumlocutions |
| Change in personality and emotional status |
| Avoidance of typical activities and hobbies |
| Social isolation |
| (ii) Mental status screening-use NIAA criteria |
| (example of evaluation tools that may be used) |
| Mini mental state |
| Clock drawing |
| Mattis dementia screening |
| Montreal cognitive assessment |
| Clinical dementia rating scale |
| Geriatric depression scale |
| (iii) Interview for instrumental activities of daily living |
| (observations by family or caregiver report) |
| Medication use |
| Cooking |
| Driving |
| Financial management |
| (iv) Interview for general activities of daily living |
| (observations by family or caregiver report) |
| Bathing |
| Dressing |
| Toileting |
| (v) Assessment of visual motor skills |
| (signs to look for) |
| Ideomotor apraxia (skilled movement to verbal |
| command or initiation) |
| Ideational apraxia (performing a planned series |
| of tasks to achieve a goal) |
| Extrapyramidal motor signs |
| Constructional apraxia |
| Spatial conceptualization errors |
| (vi) Neuroimaging |
| CT |
| SPECT |
| MRI |
| PET |
| (vii) Neuropsychological testing |
| (skill areas to assess) |
| Estimate of premorbid IQ |
| Attention |
| Processing speed |
| Executive functioning |
| Planning, organization, mental flexibility |
| Memory |
| Working memory |
| Immediate recall |
| Delayed recall |
| Long term memory |
| Language |
| Naming |
| Semantic fluency |
| Evidence of perseverations |
| Evidence of circumlocution |