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Norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination in a healthy population
Grigoletto F, Zappalà G, Anderson DW, Lebowitz BD.. Neurology, 1999-07-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background Although the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is widely used in clinical practice, few norms exist for healthy populations covering a broad range of ages. Objective To obtain MMSE norms specific for age, gender, and education in healthy adults. Methods From the population registers of seven communities across Italy, we selected a proportionate random sample of residents age 20 to 79 years to evaluate their health status with respect to conditions affecting cognitive performance.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Grigoletto, F., Zappalà, G., Anderson, D. W., & Lebowitz, B. D. (1999). Norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination in a healthy population. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.53.2.315
Vancouver
Grigoletto F, Zappalà G, Anderson DW, Lebowitz BD. Norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination in a healthy population. Neurology. 1999. doi:10.1212/wnl.53.2.315. PMID: 10430420.
BibTeX
@article{grigoletto1999-10430420,
author = {Grigoletto, F. and Zappalà, G. and Anderson, D. W. and Lebowitz, B. D.},
title = {{Norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination in a healthy population}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {1999},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.53.2.315},
pmid = {10430420},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.53.2.315}
}
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Key findings
- Objective To obtain MMSE norms specific for age, gender, and education in healthy adults.
- Methods From the population registers of seven communities across Italy, we selected a proportionate random sample of residents age 20 to 79 years to evaluate their health status with respect to conditions affecting cognitive performance.
- This sample yielded 908 persons who were deemed to be without cognitive impairment and who were then given the MMSE.
- We calculated fifth percentile norms and presented them as step functions.
Why it matters
This study provides Mini-Mental State Examination score norms for healthy adults by age, gender, and education, based on 908 people in Italy. These norms may help doctors judge whether a person's score is unusual for their background, but the study does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
Study details
- Participants908
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 55/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (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 | 1999 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 908 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| 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 | 5 / 7 | Cited 253 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 8.7 citations a year over 29 year(s) since 1999 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 7 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 16 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Barry D. Lebowitz: h-index 55 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | National Institutes of Health: institution h-index 2,723 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 10430420) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 55 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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