CONTEXT: Cognitive evaluation to determine possible cognitive decline highlights the need for a thorough neuropsychological assessment for early detection. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), is a commonly used screening tool that is comparatively quick and simple to administer, score, and interpret. Subtests of MoCA assess memory, language, visuospatial functions, and executive functions. AIMS: The present study aims to generate normative data for the Tamil version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-TAM) in Tamil-speaking adults. DESIGN AND SETTINGS: Cross-sectional study conducted in three districts of Tamil Nadu. METHODS AND MATERIAL: A total of 450 healthy Tamil native speakers with varying ages (21-80 years) and education levels (primary level to university) were recruited as participants. The Tamil version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-TAM) was used for assessing the cognitive domains. Scores were analyzed to see the impact of age, gender, and years of education on MoCA-TAM scores and individual cognitive domains. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics and Regression analyses were done to evaluate the mean, standard deviation, impact of age, gender, and education on MoCA-TAM scores and individual cognitive domains. RESULTS: The mean value for MoCA-TAM was 24.89 with SD 2.944. MoCA-TAM scores were lower with increasing age and lower education and no statistically significant relationship was found between gender and MoCA-TAM score. CONCLUSIONS: The present study provides the normative data of MoCA-TAM with a single cut-off score (22) to differentiate normal from cognitively impaired.
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Arathi et al. (2025) studied this question.