A simple screening test formula may be helpful in the differentiation of two common dementias.

What is it about?

Although it is often difficult to distinguish the clinical features of two common dementing illnesses, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), the two usually have neuropsychological differences. Many patients with AD are unable to remember the three memory words on the well-known Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) but are able to copy the intersecting pentagons. By contrast, many patients with DLB are able to remember the words but cannot copy the pentagons. We found that simply subtracting the MMSE memory score from the MMSE pentagon-copying score helped to differentiate many of our patients with AD from those with DLB.

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Why is it important?

In cases where the clinician is uncertain whether the patient may have AD or DLB, our MMSE formula may offer insight to help decide the best clinical diagnosis.

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