seven-minute screen

seven-minute screen

A neurological screening tool used to help identify patients who should be evaluated for Alzheimer's disease. The seven-minute screen is sensitive to early signs of AD and consists of four sets of questions that focus on orientation, memory, visuospatial skills and expressive language; it can distinguish between cognitive changes due to the normal ageing and those due to dementia. It can be administered by a nurse practitioner, physician assistant, medical technician or other trained office personnel. The average time needed to conduct and score it is about seven minutes.