Date of Completion

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Nursing

Keywords

Dementia

Abstract

Objectives of the Study: General Objective This study aims to assess the cognitive function of older persons using MMSE: Basis for early detection of Dementia. Specific Objectives This study aims to answer the following: 1. What is the profile of the respondents who potentially experience progression of dementia in terms of age, sex, comorbidity, work and educational attainment? 2. What is the level of cognitive function of the older persons based on their Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) results in terms of Orientation, Registration, Attention and Calculation, Recall, Language and Clock Drawing Task? 3. What is the level of cognitive function among older persons when they are grouped according to age, sex, comorbidity, work and educational attainment?

Methodology The researchers utilized a descriptive design to (1) assess the cognitive function of older persons using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and (2) determine the influence of age, sex, and educational attainment to cognitive function. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a purposive sampling technique was used to identify the respondents of the study. The adapted Filipino version of the MMSE, the MMSE-P, was utilized to assess the cognitive function of Older Persons residing in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, as a basis for early detection of dementia. The following statistical tools were used to answer the queries of this study: frequency distribution and relative frequency

Summary: The study focused on Assessing the Cognitive Function of older persons using MMSE basis for early detection of dementia. Specifically, this study answered the following questions: 1. What is the profile of the respondents who potentially experience progression of dementia in terms of age, sex, comorbidity, work and educational attainment? 2. What is the level of cognitive function of the older persons based on their Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) results in terms of Orientation, Registration, Attention and Calculation, Recall, Language and Clock Drawing Test? 3. What is the level of cognitive function among older people when they are grouped according to age, sex, comorbidity, work, and educational attainment? The hypothesis of this study was that the level of cognitive functioning among older persons does not decline across different age groups when grouped according to age, sex, comorbidity, work, and educational attainment. This study utilized a descriptive-analytical design in order to (1) assess the cognitive function of older persons using the MMSE, and (2) determine the influence of age, sex, educational attainment, work, and comorbidity to cognitive function. This involved the collection of research data through the use of MMSE and with older persons residing in Dasmariñas City, Cavite as its respondents. The study adopted the validated Filipino version of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE-P) as the main research instrument that evaluated the cognitive function of older persons, consisting of eleven questions. The tool was divided into five six domains: (1) orientation to time, where the client was asked to identify the current petsa, buwan, taon, araw, at panahon; and place, where the client was asked about their current whereabouts such as “pangalan ng lugar, palapag, kalye ng lugar, siyudad, at bansa;” (2) registration, which required the client to name three unrelated objects (mangga, mesa, pera); (3) attention and calculation, where the client was asked to do the serial 7s (subtracting 7 from 100, subtract another 7 from the number gained, and so on) and spell the word ‘WORLD’ or ‘MUNDO’ backwards; (4) recall, where the client was asked to repeat the unrelated objects given during the registration domain; and (5) language, where the client was asked to name the object that the interviewer points at (a pencil and watch), repeat the stated phrase: “Wala nang pero pero pa”, follow a three-stage command: "Kunin po ninyo ang papel gamit ang inyong kamay, tiklupin ito sa gitna, at ilagay sa iyong kandungan.”, quietly read and obey the instruction "Ipikit mo ang iyong mata", write any sentence, and copy or draw the intersecting-pentagons shape. The tool also contained the Clock Drawing Test where the clients were instructed to draw a clock that shows the time “10 after 11” or “Sampu makalampas ang alas onse.” The respondents were selected based on the following inclusion criteria: (a) being at least sixty (60) years old, (b) citizen of the Republic of the Philippines, (c) residing in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, (d) literate to at least either the English or Filipino language, and (e) willing to participate. Frequency distribution and relative frequency were utilized for the statistical treatment of data.

Findings The following findings were drawn from the study: 1. Among the 392 respondents from Filipino older persons aged 60 years old and above living in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, many of the respondents were 65-74 years old, belonging to the young-old age bracket (53.8%), majority of whom were female (81.4%), with no known comorbidities (69.4%). In terms of work profile, most of the respondents were retired (52%). As per educational attainment, many were high school graduates (26.8%). 2. Majority of the respondents successfully accomplished the MMSE-P (82.65%), scoring between 24-30 points, indicating normal cognitive functioning. Moreover, the majority (80.6%) of the respondents are cognitively intact based on their performance on the Clock Drawing Test. 3. In terms of age, the majority (82.14%) of the respondents were cognitively intact, with the mature working age group (60-64 years old) showing the highest number of respondents who were cognitively intact (89.95%) based on their MMSE-P scores. In terms of comorbidities, the majority (89.25%) of respondents who had known comorbidities and those with no known comorbidities (82.09%) are cognitively intact based on their MMSE-P scores. Moreover, the majority of respondents who were retired. (97.10%), self-employed (92.59%), and employed (91.67%) exhibited high percentages of normal cognitive functioning in contrast to those respondents who were unemployed (63.58%). Furthermore, the findings revealed that older persons across all age groups who were post-degree holders (88.99%), college graduates (94.29), and vocational degree holders (100%) had high levels of cognitive functioning, while older persons who were elementary graduates (39.68%) or attained elementary (35.38%) or high-school level education (22%) exhibited the highest level of cognitive impairment.

Conclusions: Following the findings of the study, the researchers conclude the following: 1. The respondents are generally within the age range of 65-74 years old (young-old), female, mostly high school graduates, no known morbidities and were retired. 2. The level of cognitive functioning based on: a. MMSE indicates that the majority of the respondents are cognitively intact b. Clock Drawing Test indicates that the majority of the older persons living in Dasmariñas City, Cavite had no cognitive impairment. 3. The level of cognitive function among older persons does decline across different age groups when grouped according to age, sex, work and educational attainment. However, it does not decline across age group when grouped according to comorbidity.

First Advisor

Alely S. Reyes RN, MAN, PhD

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