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What is the point of seeing a neuropsychologist?
Caregivers: Dementia | Last Active: Jan 21 8:56am | Replies (46)Comment receiving replies
Neuropsych is helpful in that from my experience they are focused on documenting how the disease is manifesting and progressing. So many of the questions or tests will predictably be in your husband’s wheelhouse but the ones that are and those that aren’t help the Neuropsychologist assess stage and severity. That will likely be at least as useful to you as to your husband in terms of understanding his journey.
I had a four hour session several months ago. I have early neurocognitive disorder, but I have alzheimer presence in my bloodstream per testing for Tau and Amyloid. I also have the gene associated with a higher risk of the disease. So i wanted the neuropsych testing as a baseline and will repeat it every year to track objectively how i am progressing.
But someone should have done a better job explaining the process to you both.
Replies to "Neuropsych is helpful in that from my experience they are focused on documenting how the disease..."
I admire your courage in sharing that scary information. Serial neuropshyc evaluations certainly are going to be helpful in your evaluation and follow-up. My wife had neuropsychological testing 7 years ago, which was consistent with MCI and only had one followup evaluation which confirmed the diagnosis and revealed no progression (but was only 6 months later). In those 7 years I have seen her transition to what I might describe as late MCI vs early dementia. Interestingly, her MMSE (mini mental status examination) which is used as a "rough" screen for dementia, has remained near normal all this time. All cognitive impairment is not the same.
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Great answer!! I guess I just don't think it would have made any difference in his treatment. It's a bit like Tetris: fitting the piece that just dropped, into today's place in the puzzle and then waiting for the next piece to drop and dealing with that.