Your brain is among the most complicated areas of your body. This makes issues affecting your brain require special care and attention to deal with or manage associated symptoms effectively. Problems in your brain can cause language, memory, and thinking issues. These issues can be checked out through the application of cognitive testing Atlanta. Cognitive testing and what it is all about are discussed in detail below.
What is Cognitive Testing?
This involves checking your brain out for any issues with cognition. Cognition consists of the brain processes in most areas of your life, including memory, thinking, judgment, language, and the ability to learn new things. When these areas are affected, mild to severe cognitive impairment may occur.
Cognitive impairment can be caused by multiple issues like:
- Blood vessel disorders
- Drug side effects
- Dementia is characterized by extreme mental functioning loss, with the most typical one being Alzheimer’s disease
- Depression
This testing does not identify the specific cause of impairment but can reveal to your physician whether you need more tests or treatment plans required to deal with the issue.
The most typical cognitive tests are used to measure mental functions through various tasks and questions. These are designed to test for mental functions like language, memory, and the ability to identify objects. Some of these tests include:
Mini-Mental State Exam
This test takes about eight to ten minutes and involves counting backward, naming the current date, and identifying everyday objects like a cup or table.
Montreal Cognitive Assessment test
This is a twelve to fifteen-minute exam involving identifying an animal picture, memorizing a short list of words, and copying a drawing of an object or shape.
Mini-Cog
This short test takes between three and five minutes and includes drawing a clock and recalling a three-word list of items.
Cognitive testing is typically applied to identify mild cognitive impairment. People with this issue can notice changes in some of their mental functions like memory. These changes may not be extreme enough to disrupt your usual activities. They can, however, be a risk factor for a more severe ailment. Your physician will perform various tests over time to monitor you if you have mild cognitive impairment.
Cognitive testing can be suitable if you exhibit signs of cognitive impairment, including:
- Losing things often
- Forgetting important events and appointments
- Losing your train of thought in movies, conversations, or books
- Having difficulty in identifying words you typically know
- Increased anxiety or irritability
Cognitive testing has no risks and needs no prior preparation.
If the results reveal an abnormality, there may be some memory or another mental function issue. The exact cause will not be known, and more tests will be needed for diagnosis. Some causes of cognitive impairment can be treatable medical issues like:
- Medicinal side effects
- Thyroid disease
- Vitamin deficiencies
The cognitive issues go away or improve once treatments are done.
Issues affecting your brain crucially need to be addressed as they can affect the quality of life. This is because your brain controls every aspect of your body’s functionalities. For any inquiries on cognitive testing, check out our website, or call our offices in Atlanta, GA.
