Cognitive assessment mainly tests the thinking abilities of a patient. Generally, it may involve perception, reasoning, mathematical and verbal abilities, language, memory, and problem-solving. These tests set questions, preferably to determine if a patient suffers any memory loss or shows other signs of cognitive damage that Alzheimer’s disease may cause.
This act builds a picture of the patient’s ability to use certain skills and allows their clinicians to monitor how they change over time. The simple cognitive assessment test may take around 5 minutes, while the full ones take one hour to two hours.
Some of the common test methods for cognitive assessment include BrainTest and BrainCheck. These are performed to diagnose Alzheimer’s at its early stages. The earlier this condition is diagnosed, the better it is for the patient. It brings about emotional, social, and medical benefits.
This article focuses on the use of BrainTest and BrainCheck as cognitive assessments to confirm if someone shows signs of Alzheimer’s or not.
Home Screening Tests for Alzheimer
Different companies have developed various software through which individuals can partake in self-assessment in the comfort of their homes. They help to check if they are suffering from any signs of Alzheimer’s.
Most people will say they are cost-effective and reliable since they are right at your service. However, it is essential to note that not all are scientifically proven to be accurate as much as they are marketed to consumers.
What does this mean? There are chances that you will get incorrect, positive results. You may do self-testing, and the results show you have dementia while you don’t.
This is unlikely if the patient decides to visit a Cognes physician to seek a potential diagnosis and care. Just as the Alzheimer’s Association advises, people should not use home screening tests to substitute for a compelling examination by experienced doctors.
Considering that there are no low-cost biometric tools on the market, Cognes proves to retain competitive advantages in such areas as:
- Cost-effectiveness and scalability: The general cognitive assessment is affordable and efficient. This gives every person a chance to get tested as early as possible.
- Patient convenience: forget about the struggle and difficulties in operation or understanding. Cognes is non-invasive, and patients can administer it by themselves.
- Can estimate the presence of biomarkers.
Mental Cognitive Status Tests
Visit Cognes today and get a thorough examination by highly skilled physicians. Cognes uses BrainCheck and BrainTest for cognitive assessment. They evaluate your memory status and can even identify other diseases you\’re suffering from.
Note that some of these tests are brief, while others are complex and time-intensive. A neuropsychologist evaluates you to check on language, judgment abilities, and attention in complex brain tests.
Once these tests are performed, they give an overall confirmation if:
- The patient is aware of the symptoms
- Knows the time or the date they are
- They can remember a list of words, follow instructions, or even handle simple calculations.
How Does BrainTest Work?
This is a commonly asked question. It is precise and straightforward and helps individuals detect dementia in its early stages.
There are three significant steps to follow when taking a brain test.
- First Test
This is the initial stage of cognitive testing. You’re required to take your very first test keenly since it is the one that determines one’s baseline score. The score acts as a reference point and is used to track and compare future results.
You\’ll find closely related questions specifically designed to assess how good your current thinking is and your ability to remember things with less struggle.
- Result Review
Once your results are ready, you’ll get a notification. The review comes in as a printable detailed report of what you have scored accompanied by a video explanation. If you\’re taking the assessment as a clinical diagnosis, your physician will discuss the results with you.
- Track Performance
BrainTest is designed to be performed after every six months. What is more, we notify you when the next test is due. As time goes by, you’re able to notice any changes occurring in your performance. If you’re not sure of the changes, check in with a physician for further diagnosis.
BrainCheck, on the other hand, links data scientists, neuroscientists, and technology experts to help providers offer personalized and high-quality cognitive care to Alzheimer’s patients throughout the world.
The primary focus of this technology is to help everyone access insight into their cognitive function, detect cognitive changes as early, and find a solution to prevent Alzheimer’s and other related diseases. This method helps reduce the economic and human toll of dementia and cognitive impairment through mental care planning and interactive assessment.
The Importance of Early Cognitive Assessment
One of the early clinical symptomatic stages of dementia is mild cognitive impairment (MCI). It signifies a cognitive impairment level between dementia and normal cognition (NC). Well, even though not all mild cognitive impairments progress, a 5-10% conversion rate has been observed over the years.
This emphasizes the importance of early identification of MCI and progressive clinical intervention for Alzheimer’s. Cognitive screening assessments such as BrainCheck have helped highly in the detection of MCI in time. It has demonstrated 90% specificity and 83% sensitivity which is relatively ideal in distinguishing between NC and MCI.
The early cognitive assessment also helps one to plan. BrainTest can help to reveal strokes, trauma, or tumors, which contributes highly to cognitive changes. With that, you get time to plan what you want to accomplish before the disease progresses.
Another benefit is that you get faster access to medical treatment. There is no defined cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but it helps alleviate confusion, memory loss, and other related symptoms when diagnosed early enough. This applies to non-drug interventions like mental and physical exercise as well as medication.
Typically, it helps in early treatment, slows cognitive decline, preserves independence, and stabilizes behavior.