Purpose
The OMCT is a 6-item measure of cognitive impairment based on the Blessed Test.
Link to Instrument
Acronym
OMCT
Area of Assessment
Mental FunctionsCognition
Executive Functioning
Primary Image
Short Orientation-Memory-Concentration Test of Cognitive Impairment
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Cognition
Executive Functioning
Populations
Key Descriptions
- A short assessment of cognitive ability composed of 6 items.
- The clinician reads the following directions to patients:
"Now I would like to ask you some questions to check your memory and concentration. Some of the questions may be easy and some of them may be hard, but please try to answer them all." - Scoring:
0 - 8: Normal-minimum impairment
9 - 19: Minimal to Moderate impairment
20 - 28: Severe impairment
A score from 0 - 8 is within normal limits.
Number of Items
6
Time to Administer
5-10 minutes
Required Training
No TrainingAge Ranges
Adult
18 - 64
yearsElderly Adult
65 +
yearsICF Domain
Body FunctionMeasurement Domain
CognitionConsiderations
Considerations: (Parker & Philp, 2004)
- OMC scores are related to level of educational attainment
- Specificity in African American groups has been reported to be low
- The OMC seems to assess changes in verbal memory
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Cut-Off Scores
Alzheimer's Disease: (Davous et al, 1987; n = 133; mean age = 64.5 (range = 37 to 91) years; multiple diagnosis)
-
>10 indicates cognitive impairment
- Sensitivity = 88%
- Specificity = 94%
- False positive = 11%
- False negative = 5%
Normative Data
Alzheimer's Disease: (Davous et al, 1987)
Diagnosis
n
M/F
Age (yr)
OMCT
MSQ
MMSE
Control
23
8/15
75.9 (10.7)
3.9 (3.1)
9.7 (0.4)
27.2 (1.7)
Neurological
33
17/16
64.5 (13.2)
2.6 (2)
9.8 (0.3)
27.5 (1.8)
Dementia
44
18/26
73.9 (8.7)
19 (7.1)*
5.5 (2.6)*
14.6 (6.2)*
*p < 0.001
OMCT = Katzman's short Orientation Memory Concentration Test
MSQ = Mental Status Questionnaire
MMSE = Mini Mental State Examination
Test/Retest Reliability
Alzheimer's: (Fuld, 1978; n = 18 patients)
- Retesting 3 weeks after the initial assessment resulted in a score within 4 points of the original score.
Criterion Validity (Predictive/Concurrent)
Alzheimer's Disease: (Davous et al, 1987)
- OMCT appeared equivalent to the Mini Mental State Examination in identifying dementia
Construct Validity
Alzheimer's: (Davous et al, 1987; n = 21 patients during the same week as the mental status evaluation by a trained psychologist blind to OMCT results)
- Adequate: Wechsler Memory Scale (Pearson r = - 0.562, p < 0.01)
- Adequate: Progressive Matrices; Raven PM47 (Spearman r = 0.590, p < 0.01)
Mixed Conditions
back to PopulationsMinimal Detectable Change (MDC)
Various Neurological Diseases: (Wade & Vergis, 1998; n = 38; mean age = 47.1 (11.4) years)
- improvement greater than 6 points were found to indicate a real improvement in memory
- deterioration of more than 2 points represented real declines
Criterion Validity (Predictive/Concurrent)
Nursing home patients: (Katzman 1983; n = 170, demographic details not indicated)
- Excellent correlations with the full Blessed test (r = 0.941)
- In a separate sample composed of patients suffering from dementia; 81 % of the population had scores within +/- 4 of total Blessed scores
Construct Validity
Various Neurological Diseases: (Wade & Vergis, 1998)
- No clinically significant differences between OMC scores and Barthel ADL scores (Pearson’s r = 0.23)
Content Validity
Stepwise regression of the 26 item Blessed measure revealed 5 items with high item-total correlations. These items were then used to create the final 6 item measure.
Bibliography
Davous, P., Lamour, Y., et al. (1987). "A comparative evaluation of the short orientation memory concentration test of cognitive impairment." J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 50(10): 1312-1317. Find it on PubMed
Fuld, P. (1978). "Psychological testing in the differential diagnosis of the dementias." Alzheimer’s disease: senile dementia and related disorders 7.
Katzman, R., Brown, T., et al. (1983). "Validation of a short Orientation-Memory-Concentration Test of cognitive impairment." Am J Psychiatry 140(6): 734-739. Find it on PubMed
Parker, C. and Philp, I. (2004). "Screening for cognitive impairment among older people in black and minority ethnic groups." Age Ageing 33(5): 447-452. Find it on PubMed
Wade, D. T. and Vergis, E. (1999). "The Short Orientation-Memory-Concentration Test: a study of its reliability and validity." Clin Rehabil 13(2): 164-170. Find it on PubMed