A study of bedside screening procedures for cognitive deficits in chronic psychiatric inpatients.
The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Trail Making Test, part B (TMT-B) were compared for screening cognitive deficits in a sample of 104 psychiatric inpatients at a long-term hospital. The TMT-B classified 84% of the patients as impaired. The classic MMSE cutoff score (< or = 23) using serial sevens and spelling classified 42% and 24% of the patients respectively, as impaired. The new MMSE cutoff classified 71% as impaired. Education, gender, and medication may influence impairment when using the MMSE classic cutoff scores. In TMT-B only, impairment was influenced by chronicity. The TMT-B was able to distinguish patients impaired in the MMSE. The TMT-B, therefore, may be more useful than the MMSE to screen for cognitive deficits in chronic psychiatric inpatients.
de Leon
J
J
Medical College of Pennsylvania, Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute, Philadelphia, USA.
Pearlman
O
O
Doonan
R
R
Simpson
G M
GM
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008609:Mental Status Schedule; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D015995:Prevalence