Clinical Medicine Flashcards
What kind of thought process is characterized by “moving from one idea to another, usually with some type of link between thoughts”?
Which mental status change might this indicate?
Flight of ideas
Mania (when severe)
Vs. loose associations, where there is no link between ideas; may be found in schizophrenia
What kind of thought process is characterized by “shifts from one topic to another without any apparent logical connection”?
Which mental disorder might it indicate?
Loose associations (derailment)
Schizophrenia
“Flight of ideas” belongs in which portion of the mental status exam?
- Appearance
- Speech
- Thought process
- Thought content
- Cognitive function
C. Thought process
On the MOCA, what skill is assessed when we ask a patinet to tap their pencil every time we say the letter “A”
Attention (vigilance)
On the MOCA test, which skill is assessed when we ask the patient to draw a clock?
Visuoconstructional skills
Which of the following is true of The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA):
- Instructions should be read verbatim
- Does not take into account a patient’s level of education
- Is only valid when conducted by a trained clinical psychologist
- Is used to distinguish dementia from depression
- May only be used by those who have paid a licensing fee
A: Instructions should be read verbatim
- Education is accounted for: add 1 to the final score for patients with 12 or fewer years of education
- Cannot distinguish dementia and depression
- Free online
On the MOCA, what skill is assessed when we ask a patient to explain how an “orange and a banana are alike”?
Abstraction
On the MOCA, what skill is assessed when we ask a patient to name as many words as they can that begin with the letter “B”?
Verbal fluency
On the MOCA, what skill is assessed when we ask a patient to repeat numbers forward and backward?
Attention
What is the difference between mood and affect?
- Mood
- Patinet’s subjective report of their emotional state
- Affect
- Clinician’s objective description of the patient’s emotional state
Which part of the MOCA assesses executive functioning?
Path finding, cube drawing, clock drawing
