Neuropsychological Evaluations

Neuropsychological evaluations can help you and your medical providers understand how the different areas of your brain are working as well as information about your strengths and weaknesses. Testing will be helpful in understanding your specific situation and can help with differential diagnosis and treatment planning. When conducting neuropsychological evaluations, the examiner takes into account multiple factors including your medical history, experience of your symptoms, and results on testing. Testing is usually recommended when there are symptoms or complaints involving memory or thinking, which may be signaled by a change in concentration, organization, reasoning, memory, language, perception, coordination, or personality. The change may be due to any of a number of medical, neurological, psychological, or genetic causes. At ANC, we specialize in the assessment of adults, older adults, and children and adolescents.

What Is Assessed?

A typical neuropsychological evaluation will involve assessment of the following:

General intellect
Higher level executive skills (e.g., sequencing, reasoning, problem solving)
Attention and concentration
Learning and memory
Language
Visual–spatial skills (e.g., perception)
Motor and sensory skills
Mood and personality

Dr. Butryn also offers assessments of learning differences and other neurodevelopmental issues. Some abilities may be measured in more detail than others, depending on your needs.

What Does a Neuropsychological Evaluation Involve?

Comprehensive clinical interview
Review of relevant records (e.g., medical, psychiatric, or schools records)
Neuropsychological testing

Following the evaluation, the examiner writes a comprehensive report that integrates the findings of testing with your history and self-report. This report includes a thorough conceptualization of your symptoms and findings on testing as well as recommendations that may aid you and your providers in treatment planning. Treatment recommendations are tailored to an individual’s particular profile of strengths and challenges. Whenever possible, our providers will also meet with you to provide feedback regarding the results of testing.

Areas of Specialty

Dementia and memory issues
Acquired brain injuries (TBIs and concussions)
Cerebrovascular disease and stroke
Neurological conditions (e.g., epilepsy, brain tumors, etc.)
Movement disorders
ADHD
Learning differences
Gifted testing
Pre- and postsurgical evaluations
And more!

For more detailed information regarding neuropsychological evaluations, refer to

Clinical Neuropsychology
A Guide for Patients and Their Families
from the American Psychological Association

View or download this pamphlet as a PDF file