Prevalence rates of cognitive impairment in persons 75 to 85 years of age have been documented in the range of 10-15%, and exceeding 20% after age 85. A recent study has demonstrated even higher prevalence rates: 18.7% between the ages of 75-84 and 47% in persons over 85 years of age. Screening for dementia in persons 75 years of age and older would therefore identify a significant number of impaired individuals. Identification of potentially impaired individuals by mental status screening and the initiation of measures to control risk factors associated with multi-infarct dementia or Alzheimer's dementia may prove to be a powerful argument for making the diagnosis of dementia at an early stage. This study was conducted to explore the feasibility of group screening for cognitive impairment and to compare the results obtained with a well-validated, individually administered screening test. The Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was modified for use in a group setting. Community volunteers were tested as a group in two settings, a geriatric health fair and a special exercise class for the elderly. Subjects were subsequently tested individually using the standard MMSE. A Pearson correlation of 0.90 indicated a high degree of concurrent validity between the two methods of mental status screening. This pilot study suggests that screening for cognitive dysfunction in a group setting may be a useful addition to currently used methods for detecting dementia. (Author/NB)