Session details: AHA: Active and Healthy Aging Living Labs Workshop

We recently proposed a novel method that aggregates the multidimensional aging pattern across the brain to a single value. This method proved to provide stable and reliable estimates of brain aging – even across different scanners. While investigating longitudinal changes in BrainAGE in about 400 elderly subjects, we discovered that patients with Alzheimer’s disease and subjects who had converted to AD within 3 years showed accelerated brain atrophy by +6 years at baseline. An additional increase in BrainAGE accumulated to a score of about +9 years during follow-up. Accelerated brain aging was related to prospective cognitive decline and disease severity. In conclusion, the BrainAGE framework indicates discrepancies in brain aging and could thus serve as an indicator for cognitive functioning in the future.

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Psychophysiological Responses to Stress Related to Anxiety in Healthy Aging

Journal of Psychophysiology ◽

10.1027/0269-8803/a000221 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (3) ◽

pp. 188-197 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Roberta Adorni ◽

Agostino Brugnera ◽

Alessia Gatti ◽

Giorgio A. Tasca ◽

Kaoru Sakatani ◽

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Keyword(s):

Healthy Aging ◽

Near Infrared ◽

Response Times ◽

Cognitive Resources ◽

Stressful Condition ◽

Healthy Elderly ◽

Situational Stress ◽

Anxiety Response ◽

Nirs Signal ◽

Psychophysiological Correlates

Abstract. The aim of the study was to explore the effects of situational stress and anxiety in a group of healthy elderly, both in terms of psychophysiological correlates and cognitive performance. Eighteen participants ( Mage = 70 ± 6.3; range 60–85) were assessed for anxiety and were instructed to perform a computerized math task, under both a stressful and a control condition, while near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) signal and electrocardiography (ECG) were recorded. NIRS results evidenced an increased activation of right PFC during the entire procedure, even if effect sizes between left and right channels were larger during the experimental condition. The amount of right activation during the stressful condition was positively correlated with anxiety. Response times (RTs) were slower in more anxious than in less anxious individuals, both during the control and stressful conditions. Accuracy was lower in more anxious than in less anxious individuals, only during the stressful condition. Moreover, heart rate (HR) was not modulated by situational stress, nor by anxiety. Overall, the present study suggests that in healthy elderly, anxiety level has a significant impact on cerebral responses, and both on the amount of cognitive resources and the quality of performance in stressful situations.

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Prospective Memory Development Across the Lifespan

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000380 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 25 (3) ◽

pp. 162-173 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sascha Zuber ◽

Matthias Kliegel

Keyword(s):

Prospective Memory ◽

Healthy Aging ◽

Present Model ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Well Being ◽

The Elderly ◽

Cognitive Factors ◽

Everyday Functioning ◽

Integrative Framework

Abstract. Prospective Memory (PM; i.e., the ability to remember to perform planned tasks) represents a key proxy of healthy aging, as it relates to older adults’ everyday functioning, autonomy, and personal well-being. The current review illustrates how PM performance develops across the lifespan and how multiple cognitive and non-cognitive factors influence this trajectory. Further, a new, integrative framework is presented, detailing how those processes interplay in retrieving and executing delayed intentions. Specifically, while most previous models have focused on memory processes, the present model focuses on the role of executive functioning in PM and its development across the lifespan. Finally, a practical outlook is presented, suggesting how the current knowledge can be applied in geriatrics and geropsychology to promote healthy aging by maintaining prospective abilities in the elderly.

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