Appearance
When assessing orientation, what are the 4 areas to assess
Person, place, time, situation
How do you test for memory?
Naming 3 things and asking person to recall them
What does level of consciousness refer to?
State of wakefulness
How would you describe normal thought process? (3 things)
Logical, linear, goal directed
What adjective describes normal mood?
Euthymic
What are 3 things you would assess related to a person's appearance?
Age, Race/ethnicity, height/weight, gait, posture, attire/grooming, eye contact, physical abnormalities, speech patters
Serial 7's is a part of which common mental status exam?
Serial 7's
What does it mean to have a "normal" level of consciousness?
Patient can respond to stimuli at the same lower level of strength as most people who are functioning without neurological difficulty
What are 3 significant thought processes that are remarkable?
Tangential, circumstantial, loose associations, word salad, blocking, flight of ideas, neologisms
How would you describe dysphoric mood?
What are the two phrases that describe changes psychomotor activity
Psychomotor agitation/psychomotor retardation
What is the name of the formal exam which tests cognitive dysfunction
MoCA
What is a clouded level of consciousness?
Reduced awareness
What is magical thinking?
A thought content in which there is a belief that unrelated events are causally connected despite the absence of any plausible causal link between them (e.g., supernatural effect)
What is a constricted affect?
Normal amplitude, but restricted range
What types of psychomotor movements should be documented
Tic, Tremors, Compulsions
What are the 3 elements of cognitive abilities?
Attention, Language, Memory,
What is delirium?
acute or subacute (hours to days) onset of abnormal mental state (e.g., fluctuating consciousness, disorientation, irritability, hallucinations)
What are 3 elements of thought content?
Delusions, preoccupations, magical thinking, obsessions, phobia, paranoia
What is a blunted mood?
Decrease in amplitude
What adjectives describe posture?
Erect, kyphotic
Are three things are assessed related to language?
Comprehension, repetition, phonemic errors
What does obtundation refer to?
Patient is slow to respond
What is the difference between a delusion and an overvalued idea?
What is the difference between mood and affect?
Affect is the presentation which can change in shorter amounts of time. Mood is more stable and relates to how the person if feeling