ABPN Geriatric Psychiatry study guide
ABPN Geriatric Psychiatry · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Geriatric Psychiatry Continuing Certification examination is an ABPN maintenance-of-certification assessment for psychiatrists who already hold ABPN certification in geriatric psychiatry and need to keep it current. It is not an entry-level credential and it does not replace initial subspecialty certification; it sits inside the Continuing Certification (CC) program, which also carries separate self-assessment, improvement-in-medical-practice, patient-safety, and article-based requirements that are tracked through the ABPN Physician Portal. Content spans the two broad areas ABPN uses for this credential - geriatric psychiatry and general psychiatry - so candidates should expect late-life mood, cognitive, psychotic, anxiety, and substance-related disorders alongside core psychiatry that presents in older adults, including interactions with medical illness, polypharmacy, and capacity and end-of-life questions. Preparation works best as a structured pass over late-life neuropsychiatry plus a refresher on general psychiatry, followed by practice questions used to find gaps rather than to build volume. Topics on this exam: Geriatric Psychiatry and Psychiatry. The ABPN Geriatric Psychiatry study guide has 2 sections and about 626 words.
01Geriatric Psychiatry: Cognitive Disorders, Assessment, and Treatment
Geriatric psychiatry questions reward precise definitions. Know the DSM-5-TR neurocognitive disorder (NCD) framework: major vs. mild NCD is separated by whether deficits interfere with independent everyday function, not by the severity of a single test score. Know the common dementia syndromes and their signature profiles: Alzheimer disease (insidious amnestic onset, temporoparietal/hippocampal atrophy), vascular NCD (stepwise course, executive/speed deficits, cerebrovascular disease), dementia with Lewy bodies (fluctuating cognition, formed visual hallucinations, parkinsonism, REM sleep behavior disorder, neuroleptic sensitivity), frontotemporal dementia (behavioral disinhibition or language-predominant variants with relatively preserved memory), and normal-pressure hydrocephalus (gait apraxia, incontinence, cognitive slowing).
335 words, about 2 min02Psychiatry: Mood, Anxiety, Psychosis, and Substance Use in Older Adults
Late-life depression is common and often presents atypically: somatic complaints, anhedonia, apathy, cognitive slowing, or irritability rather than stated sadness. Depression is a risk factor for suicide, especially in older men, and is associated with worse outcomes in comorbid medical illness. Know the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder and the role of screening tools (PHQ-9, Geriatric Depression Scale). Bipolar disorder in late life may be new-onset and warrants evaluation for secondary causes (stroke, medication, endocrine).
291 words, about 1 min