Topic: MMSE
Subject: Medicine
The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) tests for:
Mood
Behavior
Intelligence quotient
Cognitive function
Correct Answer :
D. Cognitive function
The MMSE is most commonly used in clinical settings. It is considered valuable because it assesses a broad range of cognitive abilities (i.e., memory, language, spatial ability, set shifting) in a simple and straightforward manner. In addition, the wide use of the MMSE in epidemiologic studies has yielded cutoff scores that facilitate the identification of patient with cognitive dysfunction.
Related Questions
Topic: Alzheimer's Disease
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is associated with an increased risk of developing Alzheimers disease?
A positive homozygous genotype for apolipoprotein E4
Elevated serum aluminum
Elevated serum alpha-tocopherol
Decreased serum Beta-carotene
Topic: Neurologic pain
Subject: Medicine
A 21-year-old man presented to the emergency hospital with severe abdominal pain. The pain started four hour ago. His medical history reveals Acute Intermittent Porphyria (AIP) and he used to have frequent attacks of abdominal pain and believes that this attack is no different. On examination, the patient is in acute pain and slightly feverish but not pale, jaundiced or cyanosed. However, his blood pressure is found to be high and he has tachycardia.
You should consider a diagnosis other than an AIP attack if the pain is associated with:
Constipation
Tenderness
Abdominal distension
Decreased bowel sounds
Topic: Tension headache.
Subject: Medicine
A woman presents with chief complaint of tightening, band-like headaches that usually occur upon rising in the morning. What is the most likely diagnosis?
Migraine headache
Premenstrual headache
Tension headache
Cluster headache
Topic: Glasgow Coma Scale
Subject: Medicine
A 27 year old man is brought into the ER after a bicycling accident. A car door suddenly opened in front of him, of which he smashed into and was thrown 15 feet. On examination, he is drowsy and confused. He opens his eyes when his name is called. When he speaks, you understand his words but the sentences do not make sense. He moves all four limbs but does not respond to any commands. He is able to pull both hands away when pinched and squirms when his sternum is rubbed, making no effort to stop you.
What is his Glasgow Coma Scale score?
11
10
9
8
Topic: Analgesics
Subject: Medicine
A 74-year-old black female has moderately severe pain due to osteoarthritis. However, she is also on medication for a seizure disorder. When choosing medications to manage her chronic pain, which one of the following should be used with caution because of her history of seizures?
Salsalate (Disalcid)
Celecoxib (Celebrex)
Hydrocodone (Lortab)
Tramadol (Ultram)
Topic: Seizure
Subject: Medicine
Of the following, which is the most frequent cause of seizures in the elderly?
Alcohol withdrawal
Stroke
Head trauma
Hypoglycemia
Topic: Huntington Chorea
Subject: Medicine
A patient previously diagnosed with Huntington chorea (HC) comes for a family planning consult with his wife. He states that his father had the disease and his mother was unaffected. They ask you what is the likelihood having a son with this condition?
Zero
25%
50%
75%
Topic: Delirium Tremens
Subject: Medicine
You see a 49-year-old man in the emergency room with a 20-year-history of alcohol abuse. He is agitated and floridly psychotic, with visual hallucinations and persecutory delusions. On examination his blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate are all increased. He is disoriented, sweaty, and has abdominal cramps.
What is the most likely diagnosis?
Subdural hematoma
Alcohol intoxication
Hepatic encephalopathy
Delirium tremens
Topic: Dementia
Subject: Medicine
All of the following dementias can benefit from specific treatments, except:
Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH)
Alzheimers disease
Sarcoidosis
Creutzfeldt Jakob disease
Topic: Essential Tremor
Subject: Medicine
A 75 year old white male complains of a tremor which has been progressive over the past 2 years. The tremor interferes with writing, pouring liquids, and eating soup. He has no other medical problems. He abstains from alcohol and tobacco products. Physical examination is remarkable for an action tremor of the upper extremities and a head tremor. No rigidity or gait disorder is noted. Of the following agents, which one is most appropriate as initial drug therapy for this problem?
Alprazolam (Xanax)
Clonazepam (Klonopin)
Carbamazepine (Tegretol)
Propranolol (Inderal)
Topic: Peripheral Neuropathy
Subject: Medicine
A 68-year-old male presents to your department complaining of a very horrible sensation in his legs that started out 4 weeks ago as pins and needles tickling him but now has progressed and feels like being stabbed in his feet. He has started to use a walker because he feels that when he walks it feels like stepping on eggshells. The pain has not been responsive to acetaminophen and ibuprofen. The patients past medical history is significant for diabetes type II treated with metformin and glimepiride. The patient has not been very compliant with medications, especially metformin because he feels it causes him an upset stomach. His most recent HbA1C level was 9.8%. He also has hypercholesterolemia treated with lovastatin and hypertension treated with Lisinopril and amlodipine. His vital signs are temperature 37.4°C, BP is 125/70 mmHg, pulse 85/min, and respirations 15/min. The dorsalis pedis and posterior tibial pulses are +2 bilaterally. No distal muscles weakness or atrophy is observed. Manual esthesiometer with monofilaments is used and reveals decreased sensation from the midfoot distally on both feet. There is no evidence of erythema, edema, or any wounds on either foot. He has tenderness to light touch on both feet. Labs reveal normal Vitamin B12 and thyroid function.
Which of the following would be the most appropriate treatment for this patients pain?
Daily metformin compliance
Metoclopramide
Pregabalin
Alpha lipoic acid
Topic: Intracranial Hemorrhage
Subject: Medicine
The most significant risk factor for spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage is:
Atrial fibrillation
Cigarette smoking
Excessive alcohol use
Hypertension
Topic: Alzheimer's Disease
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is most predictive of the progression from mild cognitive impairment to frank Alzheimers dementia?
Self-reported memory deficits
Memory deficits reported by a family member
A normal MRI scan of the brain
The absence of the apolipoprotein E4 allele
Topic: Adverse Drug Effect
Subject: Medicine
During the morning rounds, a second year resident presents a patient as a 58-year-old female who suffers from rigidity and tremors. She has been diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease involving the depigmentation of substantia nigra and loss of dopaminergic input to basal ganglia. Identify the medication that would worsen rather than improve this patient's condition?
Levodopa
Bromocriptine
Chlorpromazine
Pergolide
Topic: Status Epilepticus
Subject: Medicine
A 58-year-old male with a history of seizure attacks suffered from a 30min loss of consciousness with repetitive seizures with no recovery of consciousness between attacks. What is the best initial treatment for his condition?
Lorazepam
Phenytoin
Phenobarbital
Carbamazepine
Topic: Temporal Arteritis
Subject: Medicine
A female patient complains of a severe headache and jaw pain when she chews. She also complains of shoulder pain and bilateral wrist weakness. Initial lab tests show an ESR of 75 (normal is less than 30).
What is the most appropriate diagnosis?
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Temporal Arteritis
Polymyositis
Sarcoidosis
Topic: Huntington disease
Subject: Medicine
A 42-year-old white male is brought to your department by his wife because of the progressive loss of his mental abilities, irritability, and some irregular involuntary movements of his hands. She says that she can remember when they were newlyweds, her husbands father had a similar condition at the age of 45 and he died few years later because there was not much doctors could do for him back then. She wants to know if their children may eventually develop a similar condition in the future. None in her family has ever had this type of condition. Which of the following would be the most appropriate answer?
Only their male children are at risk
If one child develops the disease, siblings are not at risk
All their children will inherit the disease
Each child has 50% risk of inheriting the disease
Topic: Osmotic Demyelination
Subject: Medicine
Osmotic demyelination can result when which one of the following is corrected too rapidly?
Hypocalcemia
Hypoglycemia
Hypomagnesemia
Hyponatremia
Topic: Benign Positional Vertigo
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is characteristic of benign positional vertigo?
A duration of 10-15 minutes
Associated hearing loss and tinnitus
Associated diplopia and facial numbness
Being triggered by turning the head
Topic: Mini Mental Status Exam (or MMSE)
Subject: Medicine
A 63-year-old retired teacher shared with his primary care physician (PCP) during a routine office visit that he has noticed increasing difficulty with his memory. Otherwise he is in good health and requiring no medication.
Which one of the following psychological tests is a valuable screening device to be used by primary care physicians in this type of situation?
MMPI
WAIS
Thematic Apperception Test
Mini-Mental State Exam
Topic: Hepatic Encephalopathy
Subject: Medicine
A 50-year-old man with a history of hemochromatosis presents to the emergency room vomiting up bright red blood. He had his most recent phlebotomy yesterday. His blood pressure is 110/85 mm Hg, his pulse 115/min; his face is flushed, and he is diaphoretic. During the physical examination splenomegaly and a venous pattern on his chest and abdomen are noted. He seems somewhat drowsy and confused but has no focal neurologic signs.
What is the probable source of this patient's confusion?
Severe anemia
Hepatic encephalopathy
Subarachnoid hemorrhage
Vitamin B12 deficiency
Topic: Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
Subject: Medicine
A 76-year-old male is brought to your office by his son. The patient complains of dizziness that has slowly been worsening over the past year. His description is vague, but he says that he notices the dizziness when he tries to walk. The review of systems is normal, except for increasing problems with his prostate in the last 6 months, with dribbling and accidents at times. The patient admits to going more often, and sometimes without warning. The son states that his father seems more forgetful, slower of speech, and not as full of life as he used to be. A neurologic examination reveals the patient to be oriented x 3, with a somewhat flat affect and a wide-based, slow, shuffling gate. The examination is otherwise normal. His Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score is 22 out of 30. No tremor is noted. A CBC, creatinine level, TSH level, vitamin B12 level and VDRL are all normal.
Which one of the following should you do next?
Order a brain MRI
Prescribe sertraline (Zoloft)
Prescribe carbidopa/levodopa (Sinemet)
Order physical therapy
Topic: Alzheimer's Disease
Subject: Medicine
An 84-year-old black female is brought to your office by her daughter, who is concerned that the mother has memory problems and is neglecting to pay her monthly bills. The mother also is forgetting appointments and asks the same questions repeatedly. This problem has been steadily worsening over the last 1-2 years. The patient has very little insight into her problems, scores 24 out of a possible 30 points on the Mini-Mental State Examination, and has difficulty with short-term recall and visuospatial tasks. Her physical examination and a thorough laboratory workup are normal. A CT scan of the brain reveals diffuse atrophy. Which one of the following is the most likely etiology for the patients memory problem?
Alzheimers disease
Dementia resulting from depression
Lewy body dementia
Multi-infarct dementia
Topic: Korsakoff's Psychosis
Subject: Medicine
In a patient with recent onset of alcohol amnestic disorder, the mental status test most likely to be done poorly is memory of:
Political figures of 10 years ago
Digits (forward)
His own name
Three items for 5 minutes
Topic: Seizure
Subject: Medicine
A 52-year-old male with a history of seizure attacks suffered from loss of consciousness and tonic and clonic muscular contractions. His tongue fell back into the throat and he choked. What is the most likely diagnosis of this presentation?
Petit mal seizure
Grand mal seizure
Myoclonic seizure
Atonic seizure
Topic: Essential Tremor
Subject: Medicine
Which one of the following is most likely to be of benefit in patients with essential tremor of the hand?
Isoniazid
Diazepam
Primidone
Clonidine
Topic: Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
Subject: Medicine
An 81-year-old female is brought to your office by her son. He reports a decrease in his mothers memory and prolonged delays in her responses to questions. She also has developed urinary incontinence. MRI shows dilated ventricles, but no other pathology, and a lumbar puncture reveals a normal opening pressure.
Which one of the following would provide additional evidence of normal pressure hydrocephalus?
Monocular visual loss
Internuclear ophthalmoplegia
Headache
Apraxia of gait
Topic: Trigeminal Neuralgia
Subject: Medicine
A 55-year-old man complains of extremely severe, sharp, shooting pain in his face. He describes the episodes as being like a bolt of electricity that are brought about by touching a specific area, last about 60 seconds, and occur many times during the day. Neurologic examination is completely normal, but it is noted that part of his face is unshaven because he fears to touch that area. Gadoliniumenhanced MRI shows no abnormalities of the trigeminal nerve.
Which of the following is the most appropriate initial treatment?
Anticonvulsants
Aspirin
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
Vasoconstrictors
Topic: Dementia
Subject: Medicine
An 85 year old white male is brought to you for the first time by his son. The father has recently seen a neurologist who performed a workup for dementia and diagnosed moderate Alzheimers disease. Which one of the following is true regarding the use of a cholinesterase inhibitor in this patient?
It is too late to initiate cholinesterase therapy
Agitation is often intensified by these agents
Memory is likely to improve significantly
Nursing-home placement may be delayed a year or longer
Topic: Dementia
Subject: Medicine
A 60-year-old white female presents for her annual physical examination. She tells you that since her last visit she has begun taking ginkgo biloba to improve her memory. She takes no other medications. The evidence supporting a benefit from ginkgo biloba is best for which one of the following?
Tinnitus
Benign prostatic hyperplasia
Dementia
Intermittent claudication