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Mental Status Examination in Primary Care: A Review

Table 2.
Assessment Tools for the Elements of Cognition

COGNITIVE
ASSESSMENT TOOLS
ELEMENT

Language functions Naming, reading, writing

Visuospatial ability Copying a figure; drawing the face of a clock

Abstract reasoning Explaining proverbs; describing similarities (e.g., comparing an apple to a pear)

Executive functions List making (e.g., name as many animals [or fruits or vegetables] as you can in one
minute); drawing the face of a clock

General intellectual Identify the previous five presidents; physician must take into account the patient's
level/fund of education level and socioeconomic status; screen for mental retardation
knowledge

Attention and Spell “world” forward and backward, subtract serial sevens from 100
concentration

Memory Mini-Cog, MMSE

Mini-Cog = Mini-Cognitive Assessment Instrument; MMSE = Mini-Mental State Examination.

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