NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT

Neuropsychology

focus on the relationship between brain functioning and behavior

Neuropsychological testing

measures how well your brain works. It tests for a range of mental functions, like reading, language use, attention, learning, processing speed, reasoning, remembering and problem-solving, as well a mood and behavior.

Behavioral Neurology

a subspecialty within the medical specialty of neurology that also focuses on brain-behavior relationships.

Brain Damage

general reference to any physical or functional impairment in the CNS

Acalculia

inability to perform arithmetic calculations

Agnosia

deficit in recognizing sensory stimuli

Agraphia

deficit in writing ability

Akinesia

deficit in motor movements

Alexia

inability to read

Amnesia

loss of memory

Amusia

deficit in ability to produce or appreciate music

Anopia

deficit in sight

Aphasia

deficit in communication due to impaired speech or writing ability

Apraxia

voluntary movement disorder in the absence of paralysis

Ataxia

deficit in motor ability and muscular coordination

What does a neuropsychological evaluation test for?

 General intellect.

 Reading/reading comprehension.

 Your ability to use language and understand what others say.

 Attention/concentration.

 Processing speed

 Learning and memory.

 Reasoning.

 Executive functions

 Your ability to understand the relationships between objects and space (visuospatial)

 Mood and personality

 Fine and motor skills

Objective of the typical neuropsychological evaluation

to draw inferences about the structural and functional characteristics of a person’s brain by evaluating an individual’s behavior in defined stimulus-response situations.

Hard Sign

defined as an indicator of definite neurological deficit

Soft sign

indicator that is merely suggestive of neurological deficits

Elements of Neuropsych Evaluation

1. History Taking, Case History

2. Interview

3. Neuropsychological Mental Status Examination

Pattern Analysis

examiner looks beyond performance on individual tests to study of the pattern of test scores

inability or lessened ability to think abstractly

One symptom commonly associated with neuropsychological deficit, regardless of the site or exact cause of problem.

The Proverbs Test

Object Sorting Test

Color-Form Sorting Test

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test-64 Card Version

TEST TO EVALUATE ABSTRACT THINKING

Towers of Hanoi, Mazes, Clock-Drawing Tests

Measures Executive Functions

Perceptual Test

general reference to any of many instruments and procedures used to evaluate varied aspects of sensory functioning

Motor Test

reference to any of many instruments and procedures used to evaluate varied aspects of one’s ability and mobility

Perceptual Motor Test

any of many instruments and procedures used to evaluate the integration or coordination of perceptual and motor abilities

Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test

- a psychological assessment used to evaluate visual-motor functioning, visual-perceptual skills, neurological impairment, and emotional disturbances in children and adults.

- The test is also used to assess brain damage and neurological deficits.

- Consists of nine figures, each on its own 3 × 5 card. An examiner presents each figure to the test subject one at a time and asks the subject to copy it onto a single piece of blank paper.

- Age: 3 to 85 years old

- No time limit required but can administer in 10-20 minutes

Fixed Battery

group of test pre-modified before the assessment

Flexible Battery

consisting of an assortment of instruments hand-picked for some purpose relevant to the unique aspects of the patient and the presenting problem.

Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Battery

class neuropsychological test battery, associated in dysfunction in 2 or more brain hemispheres.

- purportedly measuring elements of language, attention, motor dexterity, sensory–motor integration, abstract thinking, and memory.

- Age: 15 years and older

- Five core subtests (the Category Test, Tactual Performance Test, Seashore Rhythm Test, Speech Sounds Perception Test, and Finger Tapping Test)

- five optional subtests (the Trail Making Test, Reitan Indiana Aphasia Screening Test, Reitan–Klove Sensory Perceptual Examination, Grip Strength Test, and Lateral Dominance Examination)

Severe Impairment Battery (SIB)

designed for use with severely impaired assessees who might otherwise perform at or near the floor of existing test.

Luria Nebraska Neurpsychological Battery

- 269 items administer in approximately 2- 3 hours for 8-12 years old

- Measures the brain as functional system

- Subsections: motor functions, rhythm, tactile, visual, receptive speech, expressive speech, reading, arithmetic, skills, memory, intellectual processes.

California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT)

- Determines how errors are made in learning tasks

- Paper and pencil, computer administered test

- Use to compare alzheimers, korsakoff, huntingtons

Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test

For age 2-90 yrs old and not used with people who are deaf, measures of intelligence through hearing, provided 204 plates and pictures. Not a substitute to WISC of SB-5.

Leiter Intellectual Performance Scale

for 3-75 yrs old measures performance and verbal aspect.

Porteus Maze Test

supplementary to WAIS, non-verbal performance.

CMMS - Columbia Mental Maturity Scale

alternative to WISC SB-5 for children with cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, brain damage.

KABC-III - Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children

for young children 3 to 18 years old to measures brain functioning