mini mental state examination

Last reviewed 08/2023

This test is important in the psychological assessment of elderly patients.

The total score is 30 points. Results in the range 0-23 indicate disturbance of cognition.

The mini mental state examination attempts to quantify the patients capabilities in five fields:

  • orientation
  • registration
  • attention and calculation
  • recall
  • language

The result is invalid if the patient:

  • is delirious
  • has an affective disorder

Reproduced by special permission of the Publisher, Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc., 16204 North Florida Avenue, Lutz, Florida 33549, from the Mini-Mental State Examination by Marshal Folstein and Susan Folstein, Copyright 1975, 1998, 2001 by Mini Mental LLC, Inc. Published 2001 by Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission of PAR, Inc. The MMSE can be purchased from PAR, Inc. by calling (813) 968-3003

Reference:

  1. "Mini-mental state". A practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. J Psychiatr Res. 1975 Nov;12(3):189-98.