Alzheimer's disease assessment scale (ADAS)

Advantages

• sensitive to changes over time

Disadvantages

• not a diagnostic scale

Procedure

2 part exam:

• mental status examination (see below)
• behavioral interview

Number of items: 21

Time: 45 minutes

Mental status exam: Azheimer's disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog)

• 11 item cognitive subscale
• objectively measures:
  • memory
  • language
  • orientation
  • praxis
• total score range of 0-70
• patient with mild to moderate AD scores 15-25

More general terms

• mental status examination (MSE)
• cognitive scale