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Christophe Trivalle (Geriatrician)
As he accumulates blunders and slips of the tongue, Joe Biden is now being pressured by his camp and supporters to withdraw his candidacy in view of the next presidential election to be held in November in the United States. The 81-year-old man is currently refusing to submit to a cognitive test. What is this test and what would it prove? The answers from Dr. Christophe Trivalle, geriatrician.
Joe Biden’s latest mistake was confusing Donald Trump with Kamala Harris, his vice-president. While he is supported by Emmanuel Macron, who explains that it happens to everyone to make a slip of the tongue, his closest supporters are calling on the American president to withdraw his candidacy for the next American presidential election, which is to be held in November. Even the famous actor George Clooney, a fervent Democrat, said that he “loved Biden” but that the Democrats “needed another candidate”.
What is the cognitive test that Joe Biden refuses to take?
To prove his cognitive abilities, President Biden could take tests, the results of which would be made public. The problem is that the 81-year-old refuses to do so, arguing that the presidential office he holds represents a real test in itself.
What is this exam that Joe Biden could take? It was revealed by our colleagues at DailyMail. This is the MoCA test, for Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Lasting 10 minutes, it was created in 1996 for health professionals to identify mild cognitive dysfunction, a precursor to dementia. It exists in more than 100 languages and dialects, but also in other formats to test illiterate patients and those with a different cultural background, by modifying certain references.
“This test is not very powerful but can be carried out as a kind of clearing, to detect memory disorders” explains Dr. Christophe Trivalle, geriatrician at Paul-Brousse hospital.It consists of several questions that call on memory, but also on spatial and temporal orientation or even fluency.“.
Other abilities such as concentration, attention, language, calculations, executive functions and visual skills are also assessed.
Donald Trump has successfully passed the test twice
Scored out of a total of 30, the test therefore provides an initial approach to an individual’s cognitive health. For any score greater than or equal to 26, the test is considered normal.
In the presence of a slight cognitive deficiency, the test results will be lower, “between 20 and 24” specifies the geriatrician.Below 20, we consider that we are in the presence of moderate cognitive disorders and below 10, they are qualified as severe. Based on the results, doctors then decide whether or not to carry out additional examinations, in particular other tests carried out by a neuropsychologist..
Donald Trump, Joe Biden’s main opponent in this campaign, has boasted that he “faced” the test twice and scored a perfect 30 out of 30 each time. Does this mean the 78-year-old’s cognitive abilities are excellent? “No,” says Dr. Trivalle, “A normal test does not mean that he does not have a memory disorder, and only further testing can prove this.“.