This document discusses various aspects of intellectual development that are affected in old age. It covers cognitive functions and disorders that are common in elderly populations, such as general memory decline and conditions like dementia. Tests for assessing cognitive abilities are also described, such as the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). A study is summarized that found the prevalence of cognitive impairment to be higher in rural versus urban elderly populations, and among those who were older, less educated, and widowed. Suggested activities for the elderly to support cognitive functioning are provided.

1. V A R I O U S A S P E C T S O F
I N T E L L E C T U A L
D E V E L O P M E N T W H I C H G E T
A F F E C T E D I N O L D A G E
ANUKRATI JAIN
MSc. HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

2. C O N T E N T S
1. INTRODUCTION TO INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT IN
ELDERLY
2. COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS IN ELDERLY (GRAPHICAL
REPRESENTATION)
3. COGNITIVE DISORDERS IN ELDERLY
4. COGNITIVE TEST MMSE AND EARLY SYMPTOMS
5. RESEARCH STUDY

3. Memory degenerates with age, and older adults tend to have a harder time
remembering and attending to information.
In general, there are three types of memory:
1.Procedural memory: This memory is for the performance of particular types of action it guides the processes we
perform and most frequently resides below the level of conscious awareness.
2.Working memory: This memory holds multiple pieces of transitory information in the mind where they can be
manipulated.
3.Semantic memory: This memory of understanding things, of the meaning of things and events, and other concept-based
knowledge. This type of memory underlies the conscious recollection of factual information and general knowledge
about the world, and remains relatively stable throughout life
I N T R O D U C T I O N

4. During old age, a
general decline in
memory is very
common, due to the
decrease in speed of
encoding, storage,
and retrieval of
memory.
Neurocognitive
disorder, formerly
called dementia, is a
broad category of
brain diseases that
cause a gradual long-
term decrease in the
ability to think and
remember.
There is no cure for
neurocognitive
disorder, but there
are many strategies to
improve quality of life
for people with this
disorder, such as
daily exercise
programs and
cognitive or
behavioral therapies.
KEY
POINTS

5. C O G N I T I O N F U N C T I O N
D E C L I N E S
T-scores are standardized scores on each
dimension for each type
Source: Rocca WA, Petersen
RC, et al.: Trends in the
incidence and prevalence of
Alzheimer's disease, dementia,
and cognitive impairment

6. Inductive reasoning,
or inductive logic, is a type
of reasoning that involves
drawing a general conclusion
from a set of specific
observations.
Verbal Ability is the defined
as the capability of a person in
expressing ideas using words
in a clearly understandable
manner.
Numerical ability is all
about calculation of numbers.
The main purpose
of numerical ability is to find
out how fast you arrive at the
correct answer.
Spatial orientation refers to
the ability to identify the
position or direction of objects
or points in space (Benton &
Tranel, 1993).
Perceptual speed refers to
the ability to accurately (and
completely) compare letters,
numbers, objects, pictures, or
patterns.
Verbal memory is the
ability to remember what you
read or hear. It includes your
ability to hear or read a word,
sentence or paragraph and then
recall it when needed.

7. C O G N I T I V E D I S O R D E R S
Their greatest fears are the possibility of physical immobility
and losing their mental capacities.
At times, some people are afflicted with dementia, a set of
disorders occurring almost entirely in old age.
Dementia brings in many disjointed behaviour patterns.
People may lose a sense of time; many aspects of thoughtand
behaviour may be impaired, disrupting everyday activities.
Dementia may strike both men and women, and rises with age.
The most common form of dementia is known as Alzheimer's
disease.
In this illness, there is both structural and chemical brain
deterioration, and a gradual loss of aspects of thoughtand
behaviour.
People with Alzheimer's suffer severe memory problems.
Most often there is loss of recent memory, followed by distant
memory, too.

8. P R O F I L I N G O F D E M E N T I A
Mr Arora found that his fatherexperienced delusions and imaginary fears. He would often wake up at
night and imagine that some people were trying to break into the house. He would cry and state that he
was hot being taken care of by his family, even in the presence of loving caregivers. Over time, he lostthe
ability to comprehend and produce speech.
A daughter reported that his 82-year-old father, who had been an executive engineer with thegovernment
in the 1950s, would hallucinate. He would have imaginary conversations with Ramesh Yadav, or at times
would reorganise the Indian States

9. P R A C T I C E S H E E T O F T H E E L D E R L Y
W I T H D E M E N T I A

10. Memory problems particularly.
Remembering recent events.
Increasing confusion.
Reduced concentration.
Personality or behaviour changes.
Apathy and withdrawal or depression.
Loss of ability to do everyday tasks.
E A R L Y S I G N S
A N D
S Y M P T O M S

11. The Mini-Mental State Exam
(MMSE) is a widely used test of
cognitive function
among the elderly; it includes tests of
orientation, attention, memory,
language and visual-spatial skills.
C O G N I T I V E T E S T
M M S E
In general participant scoring below education-adjusted
cut-off
scores* on the MMSE may be cognitivelyimpaired.
MMSE-EDUCATION ADJUSTED CUT-OFF SCORES
a. Subjects whose education levels are 7th grade or lower, a
score on the
MMSE of 22 or below
b. Subjects whose education attainment level is 8th grade or
some high
school (but not a graduate of), a score on the MMSE of 24
or below
c. Subjects whose education attainment level is high school
graduate, a
score on the MMSE of 25 or below
d. Subjects whose education attainment level is some college
or higher, a
score on the MMSE of 26 or below.
*Note: The Education Adjusted Cut-off Scores are calculated
by data management.

12. Background:
Older persons are at a risk of developing
cognitive impairment, which is often
considered a precursor to more serious
conditions, such as dementia, depression
or even Alzheimer's disease. Mini Mental
State Exam (MMSE), a cognitive
screening tests rated on a 30-point scaleis
most widely used to study cognitive
measures.
Materials and Methods:
A cross-sectional study was carried out
between January 2010 and July 2010, in
urban and rural areas of Shimla district
of Himachal Pradesh. Four hundred
elderly people were included in the study.
Cognitive levels were assessed with the
MMSE scale (cut-off score23)..
Results:
The prevalence of cognitive impairment
was 3.5%. It was higher in rural (2.3%)
than in urban population (1.3%), with a
rural/urban prevalence ratio (PR) of 1.8
(95%CI 0.6-5.7). In the logistic regression
model, old-old, illiterate and widowed
showed a higher probability of cognitive
impairment. It was not associated with use
of alcohol, cigarette smoking or under
nutrition.
Deepak Sharma,
Salig Ram Mazta,
Anupam Parashar

13. Activities for elderly
Reading
Puzzle solving
Jumble words
Board games
Housy game
Picture depicting
Walking backwards
Listening to Music
Memory boosting mobile games
Easy quiz questions

14. R E F E R E N C E S
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
https://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/
J Alzheimers Dis. 2015 Sep 24; 48(0 1): S63– S86.
Sharma D, Mazta SR, Parashar A. Prevalence of cognitive impairment and
related factors among elderly: A population-based study. J NTR Univ Health
Sci 2013;2:171-6
Singh (ED): Foundation of human development