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The mini-cog: a cognitive 'vital signs' measure for dementia screening in multi-lingual elderly
Borson S, Scanlan J, Brush M, Vitaliano P, Dokmak A.. International journal of geriatric psychiatry, 2000-11-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objectives The Mini-Cog, a composite of three-item recall and clock drawing, was developed as a brief test for discriminating demented from non-demented persons in a community sample of culturally, linguistically, and educationally heterogeneous older adults. Subjects All 129 who met criteria for probable dementia based on informant interviews and 120 with no history of cognitive decline were included; 124 were non-English speakers. Methods Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic value of the Mini-Cog were compared with those of the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) and Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Borson, S., Scanlan, J., Brush, M., Vitaliano, P., & Dokmak, A. (2000). The mini-cog: a cognitive 'vital signs' measure for dementia screening in multi-lingual elderly. International journal of geriatric psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1166(200011)15:11<1021::aid-gps234>3.0.co;2-6
Vancouver
Borson S, Scanlan J, Brush M, Vitaliano P, Dokmak A. The mini-cog: a cognitive 'vital signs' measure for dementia screening in multi-lingual elderly. International journal of geriatric psychiatry. 2000. doi:10.1002/1099-1166(200011)15:11<1021::aid-gps234>3.0.co;2-6. PMID: 11113982.
BibTeX
@article{borson2000-11113982,
author = {Borson, S. and Scanlan, J. and Brush, M. and Vitaliano, P. and Dokmak, A.},
title = {{The mini-cog: a cognitive 'vital signs' measure for dementia screening in multi-lingual elderly}},
journal = {International journal of geriatric psychiatry},
year = {2000},
doi = {10.1002/1099-1166(200011)15:11<1021::aid-gps234>3.0.co;2-6},
pmid = {11113982},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1166(200011)15:11<1021::aid-gps234>3.0.co;2-6}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Subjects All 129 who met criteria for probable dementia based on informant interviews and 120 with no history of cognitive decline were included; 124 were non-English speakers.
- Methods Sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic value of the Mini-Cog were compared with those of the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) and Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI).
- Results The Mini-Cog had the highest sensitivity (99%) and correctly classified the greatest percentage (96%) of subjects.
- Moreover, its diagnostic value was not influenced by education or language, while that of the CASI was adversely influenced by low education, and both education and language compromised the diagnostic value of the MMSE.
Why it matters
This study evaluated the Mini-Cog, a composite of three-item recall and clock drawing, as a brief test for discriminating demented from non-demented persons in a community sample of culturally, linguistically and educationally heterogeneous older adults. The Mini-Cog had the highest sensitivity (99%) and correctly classified the greatest percentage (96%) of subjects compared with the MMSE and CASI.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 51/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record, so that was left out: it earned 49 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 51 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (International journal of geriatric psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry: journal h-index 190 (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 | 2000 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,797 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 64.2 citations a year over 28 year(s) since 2000 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.8× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 29 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 360 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | OpenAlex's profile for last-listed author Ahmed Dokmak holds only 2 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | University of Washington: institution h-index 3,540 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 11113982) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 49 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 49 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 51 out of 100. |
| Total | 51 / 100 | — |
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