Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and its six domains: Part 1

Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is a condition where cognitive skills are below normal but not yet dementia. There are two main types: amnestic MCI (memory problems) and non-amnestic MCI (problems in other cognitive areas). MCI can progress to dementia, especially if it is linked to Alzheimer's disease. About 15% of people with MCI aged 65 or older develop dementia each year.

Both of these primary classifications are further broken down into subcategories depending on whether cognitive deficits are observed in single or multiple domains. When deficits occur in more than one area, a person is said to have multiple-domain MCI.

In this part, we will discuss first three domains including memory and learning, social function, and language:

Memory and Learning:

• Working memory: Holding information temporarily while performing a task.
• Acquisition and consolidation: Registering and storing new information for future use.
• Retrieval: Accessing stored information when needed.

Social Function:

• Interpreting and responding to social signals from others, such as facial expressions and gaze direction.

Language:

• Translating sounds into words.
• Generating verbal output.
• Comprehending written and spoken language.

We will discuss another three domains which are perception and motor skills, attention, and executive function in the next part.