MemTrax versus the Mini Mental Status Exam

MemTrax a Cognitive Test Designed to Be Fun and Repeatable for Everyone

Neuropsychological and cognitive assessments are both methods of understanding the capacity at which an individual is mentally performing. People that are familiar with cognitive and neuropsychological assessments are likely to have experiences with the Mini Mental Status Exam (MMSE). For those who have not had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with it, the MMSE is an assessment of the memory and cognitive performance in an individual.

The MMSE is conducted by an interviewer who asks an individual a series of questions, including current date, time and location, along with others, while the individual gives verbal answers to the questions. The individual is also instructed to simultaneously keep a specific phrase in their memory, which they are asked to recall later in the test. The answers to the questions are marked down by the interviewer using a pen and paper. At the end of the interview, the answers to the test question are scored, and the test score is intended to reflect the individual’s mental status. Today, the MMSE and various other versions of pen-and-paper type tests continue to commonly be implemented to establish the level of performance of an individual’s memory and other cognitive abilities.

The creation of new technologies—specifically, computers and the internet—allows for innovation to occur within the field of neuropsychological assessment. However, much of neuropsychological assessment is still done today using outdated pen-and-paper tests. This is where MemTrax.net provides an advantage over the current standard for assessing memory performance in the field of psychology.

The MemTrax test offers superiority to the MMSE in the following ways:

1. Higher precision in the measurement of memory performance
2. Added measurement of reaction speed within the nearest millisecond
3. Less time is taken for test administration
4. The need for an interviewer is eliminated
5. Provides interesting and stimulating assessment content
6. There is electronic storage of all prior test results
7. Results are easily accessed and understood
8. Can be administered at the user’s discretion

However, there are certain advantages that come with using the MMSE as well. First, it does not require a computer to administer. Another consideration is that it offers a more diverse assessment of cognitive functioning. Lastly, there a large advantage is that the MMSE score has been well researched to correlate with specific dysfunctions. This last advantage of the MMSE is a potential ability of the MemTrax.net assessment, but this requires further research and validation.

What is clear is that pen-and-paper assessments are not able to match the efficiency that software based tests offer. There is a growing need for efficiency in medicine, and electronic assessments also provide the added benefit of preventing the necessity of an interviewer, such as a doctor, for test administration. This frees up valuable time for medical professionals while allowing for anyone that is concerned or curious about their memory performance a quick and accurate assessment of their cognitive abilities.