Deck 18: Disorders of Aging and Cognition

Question 1

Which illness is least likely to develop in later life?

A) schizophrenia
B) depression
C) generalized anxiety disorder
D) Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease

Answer 1

schizophrenia

Question 2

The most common form of neurocognitive disorder is:

A) Korsakoff's syndrome.
B) vascular dementia.
C) Alzheimer's disease.
D) Pick's disease.

Answer 2

Alzheimer's disease.

Question 3

Based on information in the DSM-5, which is NOT a part of a diagnosis of neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer's disease?

A) The person meets all criteria for major or mild neurocognitive disorder.
B) Memory impairment is an early and prominent feature.
C) Symptoms are not due to other neurocognitive disorders or medical problems.
D) Symptoms must contain behavioral difficulties.

Answer 3

Symptoms must contain behavioral difficulties.

Question 4

The _____ explanation or theory for Alzheimer's disease is linked to the resemblance of Alzheimer's disease to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

A) viral
B) toxicity
C) autoimmune
D) genetic

Question 5

_____ is a rare disorder that affects the frontal and temporal lobes and has a clinical picture similar to that of Alzheimer's disease.

A) Huntington's disease
B) Pick's disease
C) Korsakoff's syndrome
D) Parkinson's disease

Question 6

_____ is an inherited progressive disease in which memory problems worsen over time, along with personality changes, mood difficulties, and movement problems such as severe twitching and spasms.

A) Parkinson's disease
B) Pick's disease
C) Huntington's disease
D) Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

Question 7

_____ have been said to slow the cognitive decline of people suffering from dementia, while simultaneously enhancing their enjoyment of life.

A) Behavioral interventions
B) Long-term care facilities
C) Assisted-living facilities
D) Day-care treatment centers

Question 8

Incorrect diagnoses of _____ may contribute to a high rate of death for older people with the disorder.

A) neurocognitive disorder
B) delirium
C) depression
D) head injuries

Question 9

Which group of older persons has the highest rate of problem drinking?

A) men living alone
B) married women
C) older persons admitted to general and mental hospitals
D) patients in nursing homes

Question 10

Which statement is NOT true of the "oldest old," or those above the age of 95?

A) They are on average more healthy, clearheaded, and agile than those in their 80s and early 90s.
B) They are often still employed.
C) They often do more traveling than those in their 80s and early 90s.
D) They are often still sexually active.

Question 11

Clinicians now recognize that one of the most important aspects of treating Alzheimer's disease and other forms of neurocognitive disorder is to focus on:

A) behavioral interventions that restore lost memories.
B) the emotional needs of the caregivers.
C) providing constantly rotating medications so that neurotransmitters do not become habituated to one particular pharmaceutical.
D) restricting the patient's new encounters so that new memories do not further impair the retrieval of previously stored memories.

Question 12

_____ is associated with chronic alcoholism.

A) Pick's disease
B) Alzheimer's disease
C) Korsakoff's syndrome
D) Retrograde amnesia

Question 13

Drugs used to treat Alzheimer's disease affect two neurotransmitters-glutamate and _____-in the brain.

A) acetylcholine
B) dopamine
C) serotonin
D) GABA

Question 14

At any given time in the United States, only about _____ percent of the entire elderly population live in nursing homes.

A) 4
B) 13
C) 30
D) 50

Question 15

The symptoms of vascular neurocognitive disorder:

A) develop slowly.
B) begin suddenly.
C) are silent.
D) develop in the same way as those for Alzheimer's disease.

Question 16

Which group has the highest rate of depression?

A) older men
B) older women
C) younger adults
D) aged persons who live in nursing homes

Question 17

Which statement is true of older women and men?

A) The number of older men and women is about the same.
B) Older women outnumber older men by 3 to 2.
C) Older men outnumber older women by 5 to 1.
D) Older men are more likely to live to the age of 100 than older women.

Question 18

Which statement is true with regard to suicide and the elderly?

A) Elderly women who have no children have the highest suicide rate of all groups in the United States.
B) The suicide rate for the elderly is lower than the overall suicide rate in the United States, because the elderly are more robust and able to deal with stressors more effectively.
C) Doctors have found that depression and suicide are unrelated in the elderly, as medical complications are the primary source of suicidality.
D) The rate of suicide for the elderly is higher than that of young people and is often related to depression.

Question 19

_____ can take a heavy toll on the close relatives of people with neurocognitive disorder.

A) Depression
B) Anxiety
C) Caregiving
D) Isolation

Question 20

Problems in memory and related cognitive processes occurring without organic causes are known as:

A) cognitive disorders.
B) dissociative disorders.
C) pervasive developmental disorders.
D) dementia disorders.

Question 21

What is a correct statement about anxiety disorders in later life?

A) Individuals older than 85 report higher rates of the disorder than those between 65 and 84.
B) Researchers have systematically tied anxiety disorders among the elderly to specific events or losses in their lives.
C) Older adults with anxiety disorders are rarely treated with medications.
D) Clinicians do not misinterpret physical symptoms as anxiety.

Question 22

Which has NOT been associated with helping prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease?

A) aspirin
B) Advil
C) estrogen
D) Motrin

Question 23

As many as _____ percent of people who are older than 85 will develop some form of neurocognitive disorder.

A) 33
B) 50
C) 66
D) 85

Question 24

Early onset Alzheimer's disease may be brought on by all EXCEPT:

A) the production of beta-amyloid precursor protein.
B) the presenilin protein.
C) orbital difficulties.
D) a family-transmitted mutation.

Question 25

Alzheimer's disease can only be diagnosed with certainty by means of a(n):

A) MRI.
B) blood test.
C) autopsy.
D) psychoneurological assessment batteries.

Question 26

Which psychotic disorder does the text describe as increasing in prevalence as people age?

A) delusional disorder
B) depression
C) schizophrenia
D) dissociative identity disorder

Question 27

Among the most important brain structures in short-term memory is the:

A) parietal lobe.
B) temporal lobe.
C) frontal lobe.
D) prefrontal cortex.

Question 28

When new information is acquired and stored, certain _____ must be produced in key brain cells.

A) neurotransmitters
B) hormones
C) proteins
D) neurofibrillary tangles

Question 29

Surveys find that approximately _____ percent of older people, particularly men, have alcohol-related disorders in a given year.

A) 1 to 2
B) 3 to 7
C) 8 to 10
D) 11 to 13

Question 30

What percentage of all prescription drugs are purchased by people older than 50?

A) 13
B) 30
C) 48
D) 77

Question 31

Lisa Mosconi and her colleagues have developed a special type of _____ that may predict neurocognitive disorders before symptoms develop.

A) blood test
B) genetic marker
C) PET scan
D) exploratory surgery

Question 32

People over the age of _____ represent the fastest-growing segment of the population in the United States and in most countries around the world.

A) 50
B) 85
C) 65
D) 70

Question 33

_____ is the ongoing inability to form new memories.

A) Anterograde amnesia
B) Retrograde amnesia
C) Post-concussion syndrome
D) Epilepsy

Question 34

Twisted protein fibers are found within the cells of the _____ and other brain areas of people who died from Alzheimer's disease.

A) hypothalamus
B) hippocampus
C) frontal lobes
D) cerebellum

Question 35

The field of psychology that is dedicated to the mental health of the elderly is called:

A) thanatology.
B) alterpsychology.
C) developmental psychology.
D) geropsychology.

Question 36

It is estimated that by the year 2050, _____ will make up the largest ethnic group in the elderly population in the United States.

A) African Americans
B) Asian Americans
C) Native Americans
D) Hispanic Americans

Question 37

Symptoms of which disorder have been found to lessen in later life?

A) depression
B) substance abuse
C) obsessive-compulsive disorder
D) schizophrenia

Question 38

_____ is an explanation for Alzheimer's disease that suggests that changes in aging brain cells may trigger an autoimmune response that leads to the disease.

A) viral theory
B) autoimmune theory
C) genetic theory
D) biological theory

Question 39

______ has been found to be caused by a slow-acting virus, and this has lent some weight to the viral theory of schizophrenia.

A) Parkinson's disease
B) Huntington's disease
C) Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
D) Pick's disease

Question 40

Among the brain areas most important to long-term memory are the _____ lobes and the _____.

A) frontal; cerebellum
B) temporal; diencephalon
C) parietal; diencephalon
D) occipital; cerebellum

Question 41

An individual is extremely sad, can't sleep well, and experiences very low, and decreasing, self-esteem. These are features of depression among:

A) both the elderly and the young.
B) the elderly, but not the young.
C) the young, but not the elderly.
D) neither the young nor the elderly

Question 42

What is the relationship between age and anxiety in the elderly?

A) As age increases, the rate of anxiety disorders increases.
B) As age increases, the rate of anxiety disorders decreases.
C) As age increases, the rate of anxiety disorders increases and then decreases.
D) There is no relationship between age and anxiety disorders.

Question 43

Studies of the "oldest old" show that compared to people in their 80s and early 90s, the oldest old are usually:

A) less agile.
B) less healthy.
C) less clear-headed.
D) more agile, healthier, and clearheaded.

Question 44

A person who abuses alcohol often drinks alone, blacks out occasionally, and falls a lot. These characteristics are:

A) more than twice as common in young alcohol abusers as they are in elderly alcohol abusers.
B) slightly more common in young alcohol abusers than they are in elderly alcohol abusers.
C) slightly more common in elderly alcohol abusers than they are in young alcohol abusers.
D) more than twice as common in elderly alcohol abusers as they are in young alcohol abusers.

Question 45

As people age, the incidence of alcohol abuse and other forms of substance abuse:

A) increases.
B) decreases.
C) remains the same.
D) frequently appears for the first time.

Question 46

"I'm no fool, no sirree! I'm gonna live to be 103. . . ." sang the Disney character Jiminy Cricket decades ago. If Jiminy Cricket had been a human (most crickets live only a few weeks), what's the BEST advice you could have given him to live a very long life?

A) "Accept life's challenges with optimism, have good health habits, and inherit 'longevity' genes."
B) "Avoid life's hassles, have good health habits, and accept ongoing, preventative psychological counseling."
C) "Find a 'personal space' where you can get away from the world, and inherit 'longevity' genes."
D) "There's nothing you can do; extreme longevity is entirely genetic."

Question 47

An elderly individual has just been diagnosed with depression. In the future, that individual would be expected to:

A) recover more slowly than average for injuries but recover at a normal rate for illnesses.
B) recover at a normal rate for injuries but recover more slowly than average for illnesses.
C) recover more slowly than average for both injuries and illnesses.
D) recover at a normal rate for both injuries and illnesses.

Question 48

To date, research shows that anxiety among the elderly is related to:

A) specific experiences.
B) losses.
C) health.
D) drinking.

Question 49

An individual seeking help from a geropsychologist is MOST likely:

A) elderly.
B) suffering from intellectual disability.
C) suffering from enuresis or encopresis.
D) receiving play therapy.

Question 50

The MOST feared psychological problem among the elderly is:

A) stress.
B) loss of sexual function.
C) Alzheimer's disease.
D) alcoholism.

Question 51

An elderly (older than 65) member of your community has just started using the Internet to keep up with friends and family. This community member is:

A) very rare: almost no elderly individuals understand how to use the Internet.
B) very rare: increasing numbers of elderly individuals know how to use the Internet, but don't actually use it.
C) less common than previously: many elderly individuals once used the Internet, but have not kept up with the changing technology, so their usage has decreased.
D) increasingly common: the number of elderly individuals using the Internet has doubled, then redoubled, in recent years.

Question 52

Compared to younger people, those older than 65 are:

A) about as likely to experience depression, whether they live in nursing homes or not.
B) about as likely to experience depression if not living in a nursing home and more likely to experience depression if living in a nursing home.
C) less likely to experience depression, whether they live in nursing homes or not.
D) less likely to experience depression if not living in a nursing home and about as likely to experience depression if living in a nursing home.

Question 53

Survey research shows that alcohol-related disorders affect about:

A) 15 percent of the elderly, more often men.
B) 15 percent of the elderly, more often women.
C) 5 percent of the elderly, more often men.
D) 5 percent of the elderly, more often women.

Question 54

A friend says, "My 70-year-old grandmother is in good physical health but has been diagnosed with depression. Should she even bother getting therapy? She is pretty old, after all." Your BEST research-based answer is:

A) "No, older adults with depression don't usually respond well to therapy."
B) "Maybe, only about 15 percent of elderly patients show improvement, though."
C) "Yes, more than half of elderly patients show improvement with treatment."
D) "Yes, be sure to use individual therapy, since group therapies don't work well with the elderly."

Question 55

Which would be at greatest risk for depression?

A) an older man living alone
B) an older woman living alone
C) an older man in a nursing home
D) an older woman in a nursing home

Question 56

Which is NOT a risk factor associated with depression in the elderly?

A) increased suicide risk
B) increased death rates due to illness
C) increased health problems
D) increased financial problems

Question 57

An elderly individual has just been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. MOST likely, the diagnosis is:

A) obsessive-compulsive disorder.
B) agoraphobia.
C) panic attack.
D) generalized anxiety disorder.

Question 58

The percentage of the U.S. population today aged 65 and older is:

A) about 4 percent.
B) about 7 percent.
C) about 10 percent.
D) about 13 percent.

Question 59

Among the "oldest old," those who are older than 95 years old, the MOST common concern is:

A) feeling envious of friends in their 80s because they are in better health.
B) a fear of dying.
C) experiencing thinking that is a lot "fuzzier" than it used to be.
D) a fear of losing mental abilities.

Question 60

Regarding treatment of depression in the elderly, studies show that:

A) drug treatments may need to be altered because drugs are broken down differently in the older body.
B) individual and group therapies are rarely used.
C) electroconvulsive shock therapy is the treatment of choice.
D) therapy is not effective most of the time.

Question 61

Compared to individuals who are older than 75 and living at home with assistance, similar individuals living in nursing homes are almost twice as likely to experience delirium, providing evidence that:

A) living in a nursing home causes delirium.
B) experiencing delirium is positively correlated with living in a nursing home.
C) living at home with assistance prevents the onset of delirium.
D) exhibiting symptoms of delirium causes one's family to put one in a nursing home.

Question 62

Among the elderly, schizophrenia is:

A) more common than among younger individuals, but there are fewer new cases per year.
B) less common than among younger individuals, and there are fewer new cases per year.
C) more common than among younger individuals, and there are more new cases per year.
D) less common than among younger individuals, but there are more new cases per year.

Question 63

Those who begin unhealthy drinking patterns later in life typically begin as a response to:

A) negative events and pressures of growing older.
B) medication side effects.
C) a desire to fit in with the peer group.
D) pressure from their teenage grandchildren.

Question 64

An 80-year-old hospitalized individual is recovering from surgery but now has gotten an infection. Over the course of a few days, the person shows increasing confusion and consistently misinterprets what others are trying to communicate. The MOST probable diagnosis for this condition would be:

A) neurocognitive disorder.
B) delirium.
C) schizophrenia.
D) substance abuse.

Question 65

An individual with Alzheimer's disease is able to function independently. The MOST appropriate label for this person's condition is:

A) mild delirium.
B) major delirium.
C) mild neurocognitive disorder.
D) major neurocognitive disorder.

Question 66

What percentage of the elderly now use Facebook?

A) 5
B) 9
C) 45
D) 65

Question 67

An elderly person who believes falsely that others are conspiring against her, cheating her, or spying on her and who behaves in angry, irritable, and depressed ways is exhibiting:

A) a delusional disorder.
B) a cognitive disorder.
C) delirium.
D) acute anxiety.

Question 68

A 65-year-old in otherwise very good health typically will experience occasional:

A) neurocognitive disorders.
B) memory difficulties.
C) delusions.
D) hallucinations.

Question 69

Approximately what proportion of nursing home residents is receiving antipsychotic drugs?

A) one-tenth
B) one-fifth
C) one-quarter
D) one-third

Question 70

A particular problem found MORE often in the elderly that is related to substance abuse is:

A) alcoholism.
B) drinking in reaction to negative life events.
C) misuse of prescription drugs.
D) use of detoxification.

Question 71

A clouding of consciousness that develops over a short period of time and can often be reversed if its underlying cause can be found is called:

A) neurocognitive disorder.
B) delirium.
C) delusional disorder.
D) cognitive mapping.

Question 72

Among the elderly, psychotic cognitive symptoms are usually due to:

A) schizophrenia.
B) delirium and neurocognitive disorders.
C) delusional disorders.
D) depression.

Question 73

An elderly person who develops false beliefs that are not bizarre is MOST likely suffering from:

A) delusional disorder.
B) disorders of cognition.
C) memory problems.
D) sleep disorder.

Question 74

An individual has just been diagnosed with mild neurocognitive disorder. We know for sure that the person:

A) experiences little or no decline in any area of cognitive functioning.
B) experiences decline in only one area of cognitive functioning.
C) can still function independently.
D) can no longer function independently.

Question 75

Samuel, who is older than 65, reports taking six prescription drugs, in addition to regularly taking two over-the-counter drugs. Among the elderly, Samuel is:

A) unusual; the average elderly individual takes fewer than half this many drugs.
B) unusual; the average elderly individual takes twice this many drugs.
C) normal; the average elderly individual takes about this amount of drugs.
D) close-to-normal; the average elderly individual takes somewhat more drugs.

Question 76

Studies have shown that misuse of medications in U.S. nursing homes occurs MOST often when staff members:

A) use antipsychotic drugs to control the behaviors of those who don't show psychotic symptoms.
B) mistakenly give drugs to the wrong residents.
C) discontinue drugs that could have controlled residents' inappropriate behaviors and irrelevant thoughts.
D) mistake complex drug interactions for symptoms of delirium.

Question 77

People older than 85 are about how many times as likely to experience delirium, compared to those closer to age 55?

A) twice as likely
B) three times as likely
C) ten times as likely
D) more than ten times as likely

Question 78

An individual with Alzheimer's disease is no longer able to function independently. The MOST appropriate diagnosis for this person's condition is:

A) mild delirium.
B) major delirium.
C) mild neurocognitive disorder.
D) major neurocognitive disorder.

Question 79

Of 100 typical elderly patients entering a hospital for a general medical condition, about how many would initially be diagnosed with delirium, and about how many more would develop delirium while in the hospital (in that order)?

A) 10 percent, 10 percent
B) 10 percent, 2 percent
C) 2 percent, 10 percent
D) 2 percent, 2 percent

Question 80

The ratio of females to males over 65 years old is:

A) 20 percent,
B) 40 percent.
C) 60 percent
D) 80 percent.