Table 2.

Items Assessed in the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale

Neurologic Function	Items Assessed
Level of consciousness	Examiner assessment of level of consciousness Patient ability to state age and the current month Patient ability to follow basic commands
Best gaze	Horizontal eye movements
Visual fields assessment	Visual fields tested by confrontation
Facial palsy	Ranges from normal to complete paralysis
Motor function	Arm strength and drift against gravity Leg strength and drift against gravity
Limb ataxia	Finger-nose-finger and heel-shin tests
Sensory	Pinpricks
Best language	Description of events in a standardized picture Naming items from standardized pictures Reading form a standardized list of sentences
Dysarthria	Qualitative assessment of speech slurring

More points are given within each assessment for poorer performance.

Data from http://www.ninds.nih.gov/doctors/NIH_Stroke_Scale_Booklet.pdf.