The nurse is assessing a 75-year-old man. As the nurse begins the mental status portion of the assessment, the nurse expects that this patient:
a. Will have no decrease in any of his abilities, including response time.
b. Will have difficulty on tests of remote memory because this ability typically decreases with age.
c. May take a little longer to respond, but his general knowledge and abilities should not have declined.
d. Will exhibit had a decrease in his response time because of the loss of language and a decrease in general knowledge.
ANS: C
The aging process leaves the parameters of mental status mostly intact. General knowledge does not decrease, and little or no loss in vocabulary occurs. Response time is slower than in a youth. It takes a little longer for the brain to process information and to react to it. Recent memory, which requires some processing, is somewhat decreased with aging, but remote memory is not affected.
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