Neuropsychology was originally devised to study relationships between the brain and behavior. Neuropsychologists conduct evaluations to characterize behavioral, emotional, and cognitive changes resulting from central nervous system disease, like dementia, or injury, as with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Neuropsychologists are clinical psychologists, and also help to remediation of, or adaptation to, behavioral and mental changes.
Neuropsychological evaluation is an assessment of how one's brain functions, and provides information about the structural and functional integrity of your brain. The neuropsychological evaluation involves an initial interview to help determine the course of illness and how it may have affected you and your family. Following the interview, relevant tests are chosen and administered by the Neuropsychologist or a member of their staff. The tests are typically done with pencil and paper, although some may be administered using a computer. Some tasks might be self-reports, meaning that they are completed by the patient, but the majority of the tests require administration by a neuropsychologist or trained, skilled psychometrist.
Neuropsychological tests are standardized, meaning that they are given in the same manner to all patients and scored in a similar manner time after time. An individual's scores on tests are interpreted by comparing their score to that of healthy individuals of similar age, education, gender, and/or ethnic background. They are also compared to a patients other scores, to see how much they may differ from expected levels of functioning. In this way, a neuropsychologist can determine whether one's performance on any given task represents a strength or weakness. Although individual scores are important, the neuropsychologist looks at all of the data from the evaluation to determine a pattern of cognitive strengths and weaknesses and, in turn, to understand more about how the brain is functioning.
Neuropsychological tests evaluate functioning in a number of areas including: intelligence, executive functions (such as planning, organization, abstraction), attention, memory, language, perception, sensorimotor functions, motivation, mood state and emotion, quality of life, and personality styles. The areas addressed in an individual's evaluation are determined by the referral question (what the referring doctor and patient wants to know), patient's concerns and symptoms, and observations made during interview and test administration.
At Sandia Neuropsychology, a “brief” neuropsychological evaluation is typically administered, which generally takes between 1-2 hours. However, it is not unusual for neuropsychological evaluation to take up to 8 or more hours, depending on the complexity of the issues to be addressed by the evaluation and the patient's condition (for example, fatigue, confusion, and motor slowing can extend the time required for an evaluation). Occasionally, it is necessary to complete the evaluation over 2 or more sessions. In general, the neuropsychologist will try to keep the testing to the minimum necessary.
Neuropsychological evaluation documents patterns of strengths and weakness among cognitive and behavioral functions. Evaluation and interpretation of strengths and weaknesses can:
These are not tests that one can study for, but there are several things that one can do to facilitate the evaluation:
It is the goal of the neuropsychologist to get the best possible picture of the patient's current functioning. Several things can interfere with this goal, for instance if the patient is:
Patients should let the examiner know if they anticipate that any of these issues are likely to interfere with the evaluation.
It is important to get a good night's rest before evaluation. Patients who live far away might consider spending the evening prior to the evaluation at a local hotel or with friends/family rather than getting up and driving/flying most of the night to get to the appointment. Patients are encouraged not to consume any alcohol 24 hours prior to the evaluation. If taking sleep medicine, patients should check with their doctor whether it might affect test performance the next day
Patients should not worry about whether they will "pass" the tests. The tests cannot be passed or failed; instead they describe how well a patient’s brain is able to do what it designed to do; control thinking, emotion and behavior.