mental status terms Flashcards
Mental disorders
organic disorders
psychiatric mental disorders
caused by brain disease of known specific organic cause [e.g., delirium, dementia, alcohol and drug intoxication, and withdrawal
organic disorders
in which an organic etiology has not yet been established [e.g., anxiety disorder or schizophrenia
psychiatric mental disorders
Being aware of one’s own existence, feelings, and thoughts and of the environment. This is the most elementary of mental status functions.
Consciousness
Using the voice to communicate one’s thoughts and feelings. This is a basic tool of humans, and its loss has a heavy social impact on the individual.
Language
Both of these elements deal with the prevailing feelings. Affect is a temporary expression of feelings or state of mind, and mood is more durable, a prolonged display of feelings that color the whole emotional life.
Mood and affect
The awareness of the objective world in relation to the self, including person, place, and time.
Orientation
The power of concentration, the ability to focus on one specific thing without being distracted by many environmental stimuli.
Attention
The ability to lay down and store experiences and perceptions for later recall. Recent memory evokes day-to-day events; remote memory brings up years’ worth of experiences
Memory
Pondering a deeper meaning beyond the concrete and literal.
Abstract reasoning
The way a person thinks; the logical train of thought
Thought process
What the person thinks—specific ideas, beliefs, the use of words.
Thought content
An awareness of objects through the five senses
Perceptions
A B C T (mental status exam)
Appearance, Behavior, Cognition,
and Thought processes
This tests the person’s ability to lay down new memories. It is a highly sensitive and valid memory testAfter 5 minutes, ask for the recall of the four words. To test the duration of memory, ask for a recall at 10 minutes and at 30 minutes. The normal response for people younger than 60 years is an accurate three- or four-word recall after a 5-, 10-, and 30-minute delay
New Learning—The Four Unrelated Words Test.
loss of the ability to speak or write coherently or to understand peech or writing as a result of a stroke or brain damage
Aphasia
Word Comprehension.
Point to articles in the room, parts of the body,
Reading.
Ask the person to read available print
Writing.
Ask the person to make up and write a sentence describing the weather or their job. Note coherence, spelling, and parts of speech (the sentence should have a subject and a verb
Test for Aphasia
Ask yourself, “Does this person make sense? Can I follow what the person is saying?
Thought Processes.
What the person says should be consistent and logical.
Obsessions?, compulsions?
Thought Content.
The person should be consistently aware of reality. The perceptions should be congruent with yours.
How do people treat you?
• Do other people talk about you?
• Do you feel as if you are being watched, followed, or controlled?
• Is your imagination very active?
• Have you heard your name when alone
Perceptions. (hallucinating?)
7-item generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7) listed in ≥8 on the GAD-7 may better identify patients with GAD.
Scores on the GAD-2 range from 0 to 6; a score of 0 suggests that no anxiety disorder is present, whereas a score ≥3 is suggestive of GAD
Anxiety Disorder Testing
4 most common Anxiety Disorder
Scores on the GAD-2 range from 0 to 6; a score of 0 suggests that no anxiety disorder is present, whereas a score ≥3 is suggestive of GAD
Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2), which entails asking two questions about depressed mood and anhedonia (little interest or pleasure in doing things)
Screening for Depression
If the person answers “several days” or higher, administer the full PHQ-919
score of 5 to 9 = minimal symptoms; 10 to 14 = minor depression; 15 to 19 = major depression, moderately severe; ≥20 = major depression
Screening for Depression (over several days)