Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia: Definitions, Diagnosis, and Treatment

In 2011, National Institute on Aging and Alzheimer's Association joint task forces released proposed criteria for Alzheimer' disease diagnosis. These proposals included revisions to the nearly 30-year-old NINDS-ADRDA criteria for Alzheimer's diagnosis and added criteria for diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer's disease. The same year the American Psychiatric Association proposed new criteria for major and minor neurocognitive disorders (the entities previously known as dementia and mild cognitive impairment, respectively). These new criteria reflect the research and clinical advances in identifying mild cognitive impairment and offer new opportunities for prevention, treatment, and management of neurodegenerative conditions.