Do I Have Dementia? Does My Mom Have Dementia?
Dementia affects millions of people and its prevalence increases with age.?In the United States, the CDC estimates that up to 6 million people have Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. The overwhelming majority of afflicted person are aged 65 and older.?However, dementia is not a normal part of aging, and many people live into their 90s without any signs of it.?
Dementia can result from a variety of diseases and injuries that affect the brain.?Some risk factors include:
I’m a gerontologist and geriatric physician associate, so many people ask me if they or their family members with memory issues have dementia. For some people it can be a relief to find out that they just have age-related memory loss. For other people with a cognitive impairment, learning about a memory problem can result in treatable conditions (not due to dementia) with appropriate treatments.?And for those people with dementia, upon diagnosis and treatment with a medical professional, it can slow the progression of the disease.
Before discussing the screening test that I use to evaluate a person with suspected cognitive impairment, a few basics: ?
What is cognition?
Cognition is the brains ability to process information it takes in. In other worse, the brain can be looked as the body's thought process center or hard drive. Cognition involves everyday intellectual activities including: thinking, learning, understanding, remembering, paying attention, reasoning, making decisions and judgment.
What are cognitive tests?
Cognitive tests are typically done if there's a suspicion of mental decline or impairment.These tests are short and quick; they are a check on how well the brain is functioning and processing information. The test involves answering simple questions and performing simple tasks.
Cognitive tests don't diagnose specific diseases, such as Alzheimer's. Instead, they identify a problem with cognition and the need for more in-depth testing and evaluation.
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What does a poor cognitive test score mean?
Poor or low scores provide more information than good or high scores. A low score usually means that there's some brain impairment but a good score doesn't necessarily mean that there is no brain impairment. There still could be brain function issues that just have not as of yet surfaced or the test is not sensitive enough to pick up issues. Most importantly, cognitive tests CANNOT diagnose dementia.
Five-Minute Cognitive Test (FCT)
The FCT is a quick screening test of cognitive impairment. It is designed to capture deficits in five domains of cognitive abilities, including episodic memory, language fluency, time orientation, visuospatial function, and executive function. The FCT (displayed at the end of this article), is a reliable, and valid cognitive screening test for the detection of dementia, especially in its early stages.
The FCT is usually given by a physician or nurse but there’s no reason why the lay public can’t use the test as well. With one major caveat; people can’t use the FCT to assess their own capabilities because it’s impossible to assess yourself while at the same time paying attention both to the test and your own response. But you could use the FCT with family members to get a general idea of their cognitive abilities. If you want accuracy, I recommend getting a cognitive assessment from a medical professional, such as a geriatrician or neurologist.
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FTC and picture? courtesy of Zhang, Jie; Wang, Lijun; Deng, Xia; Fei, Guoqiang; Jin, Lirong; Pan, Xiaoli; Cai, Liuhan; Albano, Anthony D.; and Zhong, Chunjiu, "Five-Minute Cognitive Test as A New Quick Screening of Cognitive Impairment in The Elderly" (2019). Educational Psychology Papers and Publications. 272. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/edpsychpapers/272
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