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Bedside memory tests

Each bedside memory task measures one function: registration, short-term hold, delayed recall or visual memory.

More, if you want it

Outcomes (4)

Tell , and apart by the delay before answering.
Match to its memory type.
Match to its memory type.
Pick the executive tests from a list of neuropsychology tests.

Summary

Each task asks for the material after a different delay, so the delay shows which memory function works.
Repeating three words at once is , and holding digits for a brief span is .
Retrieval after a filled delay of several minutes is delayed recall, which tests long-term memory.
Visual memory is tested by the Rey-Osterrieth figure, and the measures everyday memory.
Trail Making and Stroop are executive tests, but the and Raven's matrices are not.
A task with no delay points to , and a long filled delay points to .

Map

Registration: the first step, which the later tasks build on.
Digit span: adds a brief hold of the digits.
Delayed recall: adds a filled delay, so the test reaches long-term memory.
Visual and everyday memory tests: apply delay to drawings and daily life.
Summary table: sets tasks side by side by what patient does.
Executive tests: separate the memory tests from the executive ones.

Registration

Must know

In the MMSE, immediate repetition of three words right after hearing them tests registration.

A patient hears a three-item address and repeats the words at once.

Definition

is the first step of memory, when the patient takes in new material. In the MMSE, immediate repetition of three words right after hearing them tests registration.

Registration differs from recall, recognition and . Immediate repetition of the words tests registration, and retrieval after a delay tests recall.

Registration is the first step, and the patient does not wait before answering.

Mnemonic

Desk takes in, hands hold, cabinet files for later. Cue: cannot keep a short sequence in mind

How the hook works

The desk takes in the words at once, which is registration. The hands hold the digits for a moment, which is digit span. The cabinet files the words to fetch after a filled delay, which is delayed recall.

Exam tip. Candidates see a patient say three words straight back and call it recall.

Look for the delay. Words repeated at once are registration, because retrieval needs a filled delay first.

More: Name-and-address recallNice to know1.4.315 s

Recalling a short name and address, such as a three-item address, is a bedside test of verbal memory. Verbal memory is also called declarative memory. The task does not test orientation, semantic memory, procedural memory or implicit memory.

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