Mental State Examination Flashcards
What are the components of the mental state exam?
Appearance and behaviour Speech Affect and mood Thoughts: form and content Perception Cognition Insight
What mnemonic can help you remember the parts of the mental state exam
All Students Are Thirsty Pepsi Coke or Iced tea
What aspects of appearance would you look out for?
Age, gender, race Body habitus Grooming Attire Posture Odd movements Evidence of injuries or illness Smell
What aspects of behaviour would you look out for?
Eye contact Rapport Open/guarded/suspicious Agitation/psychomotor retardation Disinhibition/overfamiliarity
What aspects of speech would you look out for?
Rate (abnormally fast/slow) Amount (pressured, poverty) Tone variation (prosody - intonation) Speech delay Volume
What is the difference between blunted and flat affect?
Flat affect is a more severe form of blunted affect.
Warning as seems to be no universally recognised way of describing these.
What parts of cognitive function may you be able to comment on without doing a formal test?
Orientation to time, place and person
Concentration
Memory
What is flight of ideas?
Patient jumps from topic to topic but with recognisable links such as rhyming, punning or environmental distractions.
What is knight’s move thinking?
Jumping from topic to topic with no logical connection between them.
What is loosening of associations?
The patient’s speech is muddles, illogical, difficult to follow and cannot be clarified.
