title: The Mental Status Examination in Patients With Suspected Dementia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article describes a comprehensive approach to the mental status examination and diagnostic workup of patients suspected of having an emerging neurodegenerative dementia. Key strategies for obtaining a history and bedside examination techniques are highlighted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Classic descriptions of behavioral neurology syndromes were largely based on clinicopathologic correlations of strategic lesions in stroke patients. While still very important, advances in neuroimaging have expanded our armamentarium of cognitive evaluations to include assessments of findings in nonstroke anatomic distributions of disease. These efforts support comprehensive assessments of large-scale cerebral networks in cognitive neurology.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A thorough and focused mental status examination is essential for the evaluation of patients with cognitive symptoms. Selective use of laboratory testing and neuroimaging can aid in the diagnosis of dementia by excluding non-neurodegenerative etiologies. Neurodegenerative disease-specific tests are in development and will enhance diagnosis and efforts for disease-modifying therapy development.
authors.forename: Murray
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Grossman
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Irwin
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D003704:Dementia / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007806:Language Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D008609:Mental Status Schedule; D008875:Middle Aged; D019636:Neurodegenerative Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests