A five-minute, culturally neutral cognitive assessment tool, 5-Cog, has been developed by a research team led by Dr. Joe Verghese from Albert Einstein College of Medicine1. This tool is designed to improve dementia detection and management in older adults, particularly those living in disadvantaged areas throughout the U.S.
The need for such a tool arises from the fact that signs of cognitive impairment are often missed by healthcare providers in busy primary care settings, especially among older Black and Hispanic Americans. Traditional tests for dementia can be lengthy, expensive, and require trained clinicians to administer. Many of these tests were developed in White populations, potentially introducing cultural biases.
The 5-Cog tool consists of three brief tests: memory recall, the connection between cognition and gait, and the ability to match symbols to pictures. If the results suggest cognitive problems, 5-Cog automatically puts a notification in the patient’s electronic health record, triggering a set of recommendations to be sent to their healthcare provider.
In an NIH-funded study, the team tested 5-Cog in about 1,200 older adults recruited from a primary care clinic in Bronx County of New York City. Almost 20% of older adults who took the 5-Cog test received improved overall dementia care, compared to just under 7% of patients in the control group. This simple, quick test could be a game-changer in reducing dementia care disparities.
“Quick test could help reduce dementia care disparities” (June 25, 2024)
