Diagnosing Memory Loss
The detection of small, abnormal memory changes takes both time and specialized training.
The early detection of dementia is important for its effective treatment. The effective detection of dementia in its earliest stages requires an extensive battery of assessments given by a trained professional. Unfortunately, physicians are not given any special training in assessing memory problems and must either rely on tools that are not sensitive to minor or even moderate changes in memory (e.g., the Mini Mental Status Exam), or they must rely on the self report of patients (research indicates that patients are not effective at detecting changes in their own memory functioning).
This combination of factors contributes to the Surgeon General’s findings that only 3% of those with mild memory impairment and less than 25% of those with moderate to severe memory impairment will be detected by their physicians (Report to the Surgeon General, 1999). This low detection rate is alarming, but understandable. The detection of small, abnormal memory changes takes both time and specialized training.
At MARS, we provide the gold-standard in memory assessment and we use yearly assessments to further increase the efficacy of these instruments. At MARS we assess memory functioning based on; (1) normative standards, (2) the patient’s rate of change over the years, and (3) the patient’s memory functioning as estimated based on their broader cognitive functioning. The combination of a sensitive memory assessment repeated yearly provides a very sensitive mechanism for identifying the presence of memory disorders early in their formation.
Diagnosing Memory Loss
