How do doctors assess memory problems and other symptoms?

Your doctor may ask you to answer questions or perform tasks associated with your cognitive skills, such as your memory, abstract thinking, problem-solving, language usage, and related skills.

• Mental status testing
  • Your doctor may conduct a mental status test to test your thinking and memory skills. Doctors use the scores on these tests to evaluate your degree of cognitive impairment.

• Neuropsychological tests
  • You may be evaluated by a specialist trained in brain conditions and mental conditions (neuropsychological). The evaluation can include extensive tests to evaluate your memory and cognitive skills. These tests help doctors determine if you have dementia and if you’re able to safely conduct daily tasks such as taking medications as scheduled and managing your finances.

• Interviews with family and friends
  • Doctors may ask your family member or friend questions about you and your behavior. Doctors look for details that don’t fit with your former level of function. Your family member or friend often can explain how your cognitive skills, functional abilities, and behaviors have changed over time.

• Laboratory tests
  • You may have laboratory tests to rule out other disorders that cause some symptoms like those of Alzheimer’s dementia, such as thyroid disorder. Your doctor may recommend a cerebrospinal fluid examination to help with the diagnosis. The ratio of these proteins can help determine whether Alzheimer’s is present.

• Brain imaging tests
  • Alzheimer’s results from the progressive loss of brain cells. This degeneration may show up in a variety of ways in brain scans. These scans aren’t used to diagnose the condition because there is an overlap between what doctors consider a normal age-related change in the brain and an abnormal change.