Neuropsychology involves the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of brain-based disorders of cognition and/or personality.
We are often asked questions regarding what is neuropsychology, specifically, or what is the necessity of such an undertaking. Simply put, a neuropsychological evaluation is an essential step of the diagnostic process. Many individuals referred to us have evaluations which were initiated by a primary care physician or likely a neurologist.
When the topic of fluctuating memory or cognition is brought up, in order to most accurately assess possible reasons for this a physician will likely order blood work as well as imaging. Lab work is necessary to identify possible metabolic changes, infection, etc. and tests such as an EEG rule out or identify changes in brainwave functioning/patterns while tests such as MRI, CT scans, PET, etc. identify anatomical changes by obtaining detailed imaging of the brain. While these all play an important role in assisting with diagnosis, they are limited by the fact that they do not provide detailed information regarding how the brain performs. THIS is why neuropsychological evaluations are important.