MMSE

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

Folstein MF, Folstein SE, McHugh PR. J Psychiatr Res. 1975;12(3):189-98.

Patient Information

Age (years)

Education (years)

Previous Score (optional)

Assessment Date

1. Orientation to Time

/ 5 points

2. Orientation to Place

/ 5 points

3. Registration

Apple, Penny, Table (or similar unrelated objects)

/ 3 points

4. Attention & Calculation

Serial 7s from 100 OR spell "WORLD" backwards

/ 5 points

5. Recall

/ 3 points

6. Naming

/ 2 points

7. Repetition

/ 1 points

8. 3-Stage Command

/ 3 points

9. Reading

/ 1 points

10. Writing

/ 1 points

11. Drawing

/ 1 points

Clinical Notes

Assessment Results

Raw Score:

0/30

Severe Dementia

Profound cognitive impairment. Focus on quality of life, caregiver support, and prevention of complications.

Cognitive Domain Profile

Orientation:0/10

Registration:0/3

Attention:0/5

Recall:0/3

Language:0/4

Visual-Spatial:0/1

Executive Function:0/4

Education adjustment based on Crum RM, et al. Population-based norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination by age and educational level. JAMA. 1993;269(18):2386-91.

Predictive limitation based on Arevalo-Rodriguez I, et al. MMSE for early detection of dementia in people with MCI. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021;7:CD010783.

Guidelines & Evidence

Verified

Last Review: 2026-07-17

When to Use

Core Utility

The MMSE is a 30-point questionnaire that provides a brief, global measure of cognitive impairment. It is most useful for documenting the severity of known cognitive deficits and tracking changes over time, rather than serving as a standalone diagnostic or predictive tool.

Critical Limitation (Based on Cochrane Review 2021)

This test should NOT be used as a standalone, single-administration test to predict which individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) will progress to dementia. Evidence shows substantial heterogeneity and limited accuracy for this purpose.

Appropriate Use Cases

Serial assessments to document cognitive change over time (e.g., annual re-screenings).

Providing an overall measure of cognitive impairment severity in a patient already diagnosed with dementia.

As part of a comprehensive battery, not in isolation.

How it Works

Scoring Breakdown

Domain	Points	Task
Orientation	10	Time (5) and Place (5)
Registration	3	Repeating 3 unrelated objects
Attention & Calculation	5	Serial 7s or spelling "WORLD" backwards
Recall	3	Recalling the 3 objects later
Language & Praxis	9	Naming (2), Repetition (1), 3-stage command (3), Reading (1), Writing (1), Drawing (1)

Evidence on Predictive Accuracy (for MCI → Dementia)

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Arevalo-Rodriguez I et al. • Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2021;

View Source

Summary of Findings from Cochrane Review

Target Condition	Median Specificity	Estimated Sensitivity	Consequence per 100 Patients
All-cause Dementia	88%	40%	Misses 22/36 cases, Over-diagnoses 8/64 stable MCI
Alzheimer's Disease Dementia	80%	54%	Misses 18/39 cases, Over-diagnoses 12/61 stable MCI

Last Comprehensive Review: 2026-07-17

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Clinical Context

We think this might be relevant to the clinical guidance for Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

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Clinical Context

We think this has broad domain relevance to Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

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Clinical Context

We think this might be relevant to the clinical guidance for Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

Folstein MF, Folstein SE, McHugh PR. J Psychiatr Res. 1975;12(3):189-98.

Patient Information

Age (years)

Education (years)

Previous Score (optional)

Assessment Date

1. Orientation to Time

/ 5 points

2. Orientation to Place

/ 5 points

3. Registration

Apple, Penny, Table (or similar unrelated objects)

/ 3 points

4. Attention & Calculation

Serial 7s from 100 OR spell "WORLD" backwards

/ 5 points

5. Recall

/ 3 points

6. Naming

/ 2 points

7. Repetition

/ 1 points

8. 3-Stage Command

/ 3 points

9. Reading

/ 1 points

10. Writing

/ 1 points

11. Drawing

/ 1 points

Clinical Notes

Assessment Results

Raw Score:

0/30

Severe Dementia

Profound cognitive impairment. Focus on quality of life, caregiver support, and prevention of complications.

Cognitive Domain Profile

Orientation:0/10

Registration:0/3

Attention:0/5

Recall:0/3

Language:0/4

Visual-Spatial:0/1

Executive Function:0/4

Education adjustment based on Crum RM, et al. Population-based norms for the Mini-Mental State Examination by age and educational level. JAMA. 1993;269(18):2386-91.

Predictive limitation based on Arevalo-Rodriguez I, et al. MMSE for early detection of dementia in people with MCI. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021;7:CD010783.

Guidelines & Evidence

Verified

Last Review: 2026-07-17

When to Use

Core Utility

Critical Limitation (Based on Cochrane Review 2021)

Appropriate Use Cases

Serial assessments to document cognitive change over time (e.g., annual re-screenings).

Providing an overall measure of cognitive impairment severity in a patient already diagnosed with dementia.

As part of a comprehensive battery, not in isolation.

How it Works

Scoring Breakdown

Domain	Points	Task
Orientation	10	Time (5) and Place (5)
Registration	3	Repeating 3 unrelated objects
Attention & Calculation	5	Serial 7s or spelling "WORLD" backwards
Recall	3	Recalling the 3 objects later
Language & Praxis	9	Naming (2), Repetition (1), 3-stage command (3), Reading (1), Writing (1), Drawing (1)

Evidence on Predictive Accuracy (for MCI → Dementia)

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Arevalo-Rodriguez I et al. • Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2021;

View Source

Summary of Findings from Cochrane Review

Target Condition	Median Specificity	Estimated Sensitivity	Consequence per 100 Patients
All-cause Dementia	88%	40%	Misses 22/36 cases, Over-diagnoses 8/64 stable MCI
Alzheimer's Disease Dementia	80%	54%	Misses 18/39 cases, Over-diagnoses 12/61 stable MCI

Last Comprehensive Review: 2026-07-17

MMSE

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

When to Use

Core Utility

Critical Limitation (Based on Cochrane Review 2021)

Appropriate Use Cases

How it Works

Scoring Breakdown

Evidence on Predictive Accuracy (for MCI → Dementia)

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Summary of Findings from Cochrane Review

Next Steps

Interpretation with Caution

General Cognitive Status Ranges

Evidence-Based Clinical Actions

The Evidence

Primary Systematic Review

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Key Conclusions from the Review

Recent Journal Updates

MMSE

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

When to Use

Core Utility

Critical Limitation (Based on Cochrane Review 2021)

Appropriate Use Cases

How it Works

Scoring Breakdown

Evidence on Predictive Accuracy (for MCI → Dementia)

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Summary of Findings from Cochrane Review

Next Steps

Interpretation with Caution

General Cognitive Status Ranges

Evidence-Based Clinical Actions

The Evidence

Primary Systematic Review

Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for the early detection of dementia in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Key Conclusions from the Review

Recent Journal Updates