MoCA Delayed Recall 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: How many words must the patient recall after the delay in the MoCA delayed recall task?
- 3 words
- 4 words
- 5 words (Correct answer)
- 7 words
Correct answer: 5 words
Five words are presented twice at the beginning of the MoCA. After a delay of approximately 5 minutes (during which other tasks are completed), the patient is asked to recall all 5 words freely.
Question 2: The five words used in the MoCA delayed recall task are presented how many times before the delay?
- Once
- Twice (Correct answer)
- Three times
- Four times
Correct answer: Twice
To allow encoding, the five words are read to the patient twice. The patient is told they will need to remember them later but is not asked to recall them immediately.
Question 3: In the MoCA, how long is the typical delay between initial word presentation and the delayed recall trial?
- 1 minute
- 5 minutes (Correct answer)
- 15 minutes
- 30 minutes
Correct answer: 5 minutes
Approximately 5 minutes pass between the initial word learning and the delayed recall test while other MoCA tasks (attention, language, abstraction, orientation) are administered.
Question 4: On the MoCA delayed recall task, if a patient cannot recall a word freely, what optional cue can be offered?
- The first letter of the word
- A category cue or multiple-choice options (Correct answer)
- The full word pronounced slowly
- No cues are ever allowed
Correct answer: A category cue or multiple-choice options
The MoCA allows optional category cues (e.g., "It was a type of flower") or multiple-choice cues for words not freely recalled. These optional cues do NOT earn full points but help determine if the failure is due to retrieval vs. encoding failure.
Question 5: What is the maximum score for the MoCA delayed recall domain?
- 3 points
- 4 points
- 5 points (Correct answer)
- 6 points
Correct answer: 5 points
The delayed recall section is worth 5 points — 1 point for each of the 5 words correctly recalled without any cueing. Words recalled only after a category or multiple-choice cue do not earn full points in standard scoring.
Question 6: Why does the MoCA test delayed recall rather than only immediate recall?
- To make the test longer
- Because delayed recall specifically tests memory consolidation, the hallmark of Alzheimer-type dementia (Correct answer)
- Because immediate recall is too easy for all patients
- Because delayed recall tests language ability
Correct answer: Because delayed recall specifically tests memory consolidation, the hallmark of Alzheimer-type dementia
Immediate recall reflects attention, but delayed recall tests the actual consolidation and retention of new information over time — the hallmark deficit in Alzheimer-type dementia.
MoCA Delayed Recall 2
How many words must the patient recall after the delay in the MoCA delayed recall task?