Cognitive evolution by MMSE in poststroke patients.

The aim of this study was to investigate the cognitive and clinical evolution of post-acute stroke patients and the evolution of each Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) item. A longitudinal study was conducted with 42 poststroke individuals in rehabilitation. The MMSE and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale were used to assess cognition and stroke severity. Significant evolution in MMSE was found only for schooled individuals, total MMSE (P=0.008), spatial orientation (P=0.010) and language (P=0.010). Significant improvement was observed in clinical severity for both schooled and illiterate individuals (P<0.001). Relation between cognitive and clinical evolution showed significance only for the schooled individuals (r=-0.47; P=0.01). These findings showed a favorable improvement in the cognitive evolution of poststroke schooled individuals in the first 6 months, in addition to a relationship between clinical severity and cognition, and evidenced the necessity of cognitive rehabilitation.