The Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE).

WHY: Cognitive impairment is no longer considered a normal and inevitable change of aging. Although older adults are at higher risk than the rest of the population, changes in cognitive function often call for prompt and aggressive action. In older patients, cognitive functioning is especially likely to decline during illness or injury. The nurses' assessment of an older adult's cognitive status is instrumental in identifying early changes in physiological status, ability to learn, and evaluating responses to treatment. BEST TOOL: The Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) is a tool that can be used to systematically and thoroughly assess mental status. It is an 11-question measure that tests five areas of cognitive function: orientation, registration, attention and calculation, recall, and language. The maximum score is 30. A score of 23 or lower is indicative of cognitive impairment. The MMSE takes only 5-10 minutes to administer and is therefore practical to use repeatedly and routinely. TARGET POPULATION: The MMSE is effective as a screening tool for cognitive impairment with older, community dwelling, hospitalized and institutionalized adults. Assessment of an older adult's cognitive function is best achieved when it is done routinely, systematically and thoroughly. VALIDITY/RELIABILITY: Since its creation in 1975, the MMSE has been validated and extensively used in both clinical practice and research. STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS: The MMSE is effective as a screening instrument to separate patients with cognitive impairment from those without it. In addition, when used repeatedly the instrument is able to measure changes in cognitive status that may benefit from intervention. However, the tool is not able to diagnose the case for changes in cognitive function and should not replace a complete clinical assessment of mental status. In addition, the instrument relies heavily on verbal response and reading and writing. Therefore, patients that are hearing and visually impaired, intubated, have low English literacy, or those with other communication disorders may perform poorly even when cognitively intact.