The Mini-Mental State Exam and the Mental Status Questionnaire

Performance on the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) and the Mental Status Questionnaire (MSQ) was compared among 80 Alzheimer Disease (DAT) patients, 32 of whom also met DSM- 111 criteria for Major Depressive Disorder. As expected, the MSQ and MMSE were highly correlated, with 55% of the variance shared between total scores on the tests, and 64% of the variance shared between the MMSE orientation items and total MSQ. Depressed DAT patients' performance differed significantly from nondepressed patients' on the MMSE, but not on the MSQ, with depressed patients exhibiting less cognitive impairment. It was concluded that the MSQ is a measure of orientation, and is a task subsumed by the MMSE. Consequently, the MMSE is a more sensitive test, capable of detecting more subtle impairment levels and sensitive to coexistent diagnostic issues.