Abstract: Objective To investigate the characteristics of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and analyze the influence of age, coma or not, injury side, and injury area on the scores of MoCA. Methods 135 stroke patients were evaluated with MoCA. Results The scores were poor in delayed recalling, abstraction, verbal fluency, view space and executive function, and were less poor in naming, attention and orientation. There was significantly difference in the total score, attention, verbal fluency, delayed recalling and orientation of MoCA between older and younger patients (P<0.05). There was significantly difference in the total score, view space and executive function, attention, orientation between patients with coma and without coma (P<0.05). There was significantly difference in the total score, attention, verbal fluency, abstraction, delayed recalling and orientation between thoses with left side injury and right side injury (P<0.05). Compared with basal ganglia injury, front lobes injury tended to impact the total scores, attention, abstraction and delayed recalling (P<0.05); frontal, temporal and parietal lobes tended to impact the total score, naming, abstraction and delayed recalling (P<0.05). Conclusion The total scores of MoCA do reflect the cognitive impairment in patients with stroke, while the age, coma or not, injury side and injury area of the brain may impact the cognitive impairment in patients.

Key words: stroke, Montreal Cognitive Assessment, cognitive impairment, rehabilitation