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Comparison of the Saint Louis University mental status examination and the mini-mental state examination for detecting dementia and mild neurocognitive disorder--a pilot study
Tariq SH, Tumosa N, Chibnall JT, Perry MH, Morley JE.. The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, 2006-11-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Context The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is commonly used as a screening tool to detect dementia. However, it performs poorly in identifying persons with mild neurocognitive disorder. The Saint Louis University Mental Status (SLUMS) examination is a 30-point screening questionnaire that tests for orientation, memory, attention, and executive functions. Objective The objective of this study was to compare SLUMS and the MMSE for detecting dementia and mild neurocognitive disorder (MNCD) using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria. Methods Patients at the Veterans' Affairs Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, St. Louis, MO (N = 702) were clinically classified as having normal cognitive functioning, MNCD, or dementia based on DSM-IV criteria. The SLUMS and MMSE were administered for comparison. Results Mean age was 75.3 years (standard deviation: 5.5). Regarding education, 62.4% of the sample had at least completed high school and 30.6% had not. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated and receiver operator curves (ROCs) generated for SLUMS and MMSE as a function of diagnosis (MCND versus dementia) and education. Both the SLUMS and MMSE produced acceptable ROCs for the diagnosis of dementia, but the ROCs for SLUMS were better than the MMSE for the diagnosis of MNCD in both education groups. Conclusion These results suggest that the SLUMS and MMSE have comparable sensitivities, specificities, and area under the curve in detecting dementia. Although the definition of MNCD is controversial, the authors believe that the SLUMS is possibly better at detecting mild neurocognitive disorder, which the MMSE failed to detect, but this needs to be further investigated.
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APA 7th
Tariq, S. H., Tumosa, N., Chibnall, J. T., Perry, M. H., & Morley, J. E. (2006). Comparison of the Saint Louis University mental status examination and the mini-mental state examination for detecting dementia and mild neurocognitive disorder--a pilot study. The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.jgp.0000221510.33817.86
Vancouver
Tariq SH, Tumosa N, Chibnall JT, Perry MH, Morley JE. Comparison of the Saint Louis University mental status examination and the mini-mental state examination for detecting dementia and mild neurocognitive disorder--a pilot study. The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. 2006. doi:10.1097/01.jgp.0000221510.33817.86. PMID: 17068312.
BibTeX
@article{tariq2006-17068312,
author = {Tariq, S. H. and Tumosa, N. and Chibnall, J. T. and Perry, M. H. and Morley, J. E.},
title = {{Comparison of the Saint Louis University mental status examination and the mini-mental state examination for detecting dementia and mild neurocognitive disorder--a pilot study}},
journal = {The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry},
year = {2006},
doi = {10.1097/01.jgp.0000221510.33817.86},
pmid = {17068312},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1097/01.jgp.0000221510.33817.86}
}
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Key findings
- Results Mean age was 75.3 years (standard deviation: 5.5).
- Sensitivity and specificity were calculated and receiver operator curves (ROCs) generated for SLUMS and MMSE as a function of diagnosis (MCND versus dementia) and education.
- Conclusion These results suggest that the SLUMS and MMSE have comparable sensitivities, specificities, and area under the curve in detecting dementia.
Why it matters
In this pilot study, the Saint Louis University Mental Status examination and the Mini-Mental State Examination had comparable sensitivities, specificities, and area under the curve in detecting dementia. The Saint Louis University Mental Status examination performed better than the Mini-Mental State Examination for diagnosing mild neurocognitive disorder in both education groups.
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Study details
- Participants702
- Effect size62.4%; 30.6%
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 54/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry: journal h-index 178 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2006 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 702 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 721 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 32.8 citations a year over 22 year(s) since 2006 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 5.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 15 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 122 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author John Edward Morley: h-index 164 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | Saint Louis University: institution h-index 567 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 17068312) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 54 / 100 | — |
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