Skills tests like 'connect the dots' may be early Alzheimer's indicator
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - 09:07
in Psychology & Sociology
(PhysOrg.com) -- A study of mental decline in the years prior to diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease suggests that changing the focus of testing may help physicians detect signs of the disease much earlier. School of Medicine researchers have found that visuospatial skills, evaluated with tasks such as connecting the dots or using a guide to build a structure with blocks, begin to deteriorate up to three years prior to a diagnosis of Alzheimer's.