scholarly journals Effects of Fast Simple Numerical Calculation Training on Neural Systems

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hikaru Takeuchi ◽  
Tomomi Nagase ◽  
Yasuyuki Taki ◽  
Yuko Sassa ◽  
Hiroshi Hashizume ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Numerical Calculation ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Gray Matter Volume ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Neural Systems ◽  
Improve Performance ◽  
Complex Arithmetic ◽  
Simple Processing

Cognitive training, including fast simple numerical calculation (FSNC), has been shown to improve performance on untrained processing speed and executive function tasks in the elderly. However, the effects of FSNC training on cognitive functions in the young and on neural mechanisms remain unknown. We investigated the effects of 1-week intensive FSNC training on cognitive function, regional gray matter volume (rGMV), and regional cerebral blood flow at rest (resting rCBF) in healthy young adults. FSNC training was associated with improvements in performance on simple processing speed, speeded executive functioning, and simple and complex arithmetic tasks. FSNC training was associated with a reduction in rGMV and an increase in resting rCBF in the frontopolar areas and a weak but widespread increase in resting rCBF in an anatomical cluster in the posterior region. These results provide direct evidence that FSNC training alone can improve performance on processing speed and executive function tasks as well as plasticity of brain structures and perfusion. Our results also indicate that changes in neural systems in the frontopolar areas may underlie these cognitive improvements.

scholarly journals Sex-Dependent Effects of the APOE ɛ4 Allele on Behavioral Traits and White Matter Structures in Young Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 672-680
Author(s):  
Hikaru Takeuchi ◽  
Hiroaki Tomita ◽  
Ryan Browne ◽  
Yasuyuki Taki ◽  
Yoshie Kikuchi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
White Matter ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
White Matter Volume ◽  
Behavioral Traits ◽  
Simple Processing ◽  
Genotype Interaction ◽  
E4 Allele

Abstract The APOE ɛ4 allele is associated with a risk of Alzheimer’s disease in the elderly, with the association being pronounced in females. Conversely, findings of the effects of the APOE ɛ4 allele in young adults are mixed. Here, we investigated the sex–genotype interaction effects of the APOE ɛ4 allele on cognitive functions as well as brain structures among 1258 young adults. After adjusting for multiple comparisons, there were significant effects of the interaction between sex and the number of APOE ɛ4 allele on some speed tasks (e.g., simple processing speed tasks and the reverse Stroop task) as well as on regional white matter volume (rWMV). The observed sex–genotype interaction conferred better cognitive performance and greater rWMV in the anterior frontal and precentral white matter areas in females having more APOE ɛ4 alleles and reduced rWMV in the same areas in male having more APOE ɛ4 alleles. These findings support the long-debated antagonistic pleiotropic effects of the APOE ɛ4 allele in females.

Physical activity in the elderly is associated with improved executive function and processing speed: the LADIS Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 30 (7) ◽  
pp. 744-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristian Steen Frederiksen ◽  
Ana Verdelho ◽  
Sofia Madureira ◽  
Hansjörg Bäzner ◽  
John T. O'Brien ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Executive Function ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
The Elderly

scholarly journals Factors Associated with Depressive Symptoms in the Elderly with Hearing Impairment

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-166
Author(s):  
Youngmee Lee ◽  
Sungil Park ◽  
Soo Jung Lee
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Depressive Symptom ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Pure Tone ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Symptom Scores ◽  
Pure Tone Threshold

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with depressive symptoms in the elderly with hearing impairment.Methods: We studied 23 hearing-impaired elderly persons aged 60 years or older. The participants underwent audiometric, neuropsychological, and depression assessments. Neuropsychological tests were subsumed in specific cognitive domains (general cognition, semantic memory, processing speed, executive function). The short version of the geriatric depression scale was administered to obtain depressive symptom scores for each subject.Results: First, among audiometric variables, the pure-tone threshold average, sentence-in-noise recognition scores, and hearing handicap scores were significantly correlated with the depressive symptom scores. Second, among neuropsychological variables, the reaction time on the part A of the Korean version of trail making test for the elderly (K-TMT-E), which is reflective of processing speed, was correlated with the depressive symptom scores. Also, the reaction time on the part B of the K-TMT-E, which is reflective of executive function, was correlated with the depressive symptom scores. Lastly, in the stepwise regression analysis, the pure-tone threshold average and the reaction time on the part B of the K-TMT-E were found to be factors significantly associated with depressive symptom scores.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that, for the hearing-impaired elderly, hearing threshold levels and executive function, especially cognitive flexibility are significant factors associated with depression levels.

scholarly journals The Effect of Prior Caffeine Consumption on Neuropsychological Test Performance: A Placebo-Controlled Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 146-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth R. Walters ◽  
Valerie E. Lesk
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Neuropsychological Test ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Controlled Study ◽  
Caffeine Consumption ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
And Control

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the prior consumption of 200 mg of pure caffeine affected neuropsychological test scores in a group of elderly participants aged over 60 years. Method: Using a double-blind placebo versus caffeine design, participants were randomly assigned to receive 200 mg of caffeine or placebo. A neuropsychological assessment testing the domains of general cognitive function, processing speed, semantic memory, episodic memory, executive function, working memory and short-term memory was carried out. Results: Significant interaction effects between age, caffeine and scores of executive function and processing speed were found; participants who had received caffeine showed a decline in performance with increasing age. This effect was not seen for participants who received placebo. Conclusion: The results highlight the need to consider and control prior caffeine consumption when scoring neuropsychological assessments in the elderly, which is important for accuracy of diagnosis and corresponding normative data.

The cognitive neuropsychology of depression in the elderly

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (12) ◽  
pp. 1693-1702 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUCIE L. HERRMANN ◽  
GUY M. GOODWIN ◽  
KLAUS P. EBMEIER
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Episodic Memory ◽  
Mental State ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Early Onset ◽  
Late Onset ◽  
Neuropsychological Test ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Patient Groups ◽  
Executive Deficits

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe cognitive impairment of older depressed patients with late- as opposed to early-onset illness may show important differences, in that patients with early onset may suffer predominantly from impaired episodic memory, and those with late onset mainly from reductions of executive function and processing speed.MethodWe searched Medline and EMBASE as well as individual papers' reference lists for relevant publications, recording comparisons in neuropsychological test results between early-onset depression (EOD), late-onset depression (LOD) and healthy volunteers. Effect sizes are presented for cognitive domains, such as executive function, processing speed, episodic memory, semantic memory and mental state examination.ResultsPatients with LOD showed greater reductions in processing speed and executive function than patients with EOD and controls. Both patient groups showed reduced function in all domains, except mental state, compared with controls.ConclusionPronounced executive deficits are typical of the late-onset patients described in published studies, while episodic memory impairment is not specific to early-onset illness. Possible reasons and confounders are discussed.

scholarly journals Systolic Blood Pressure and Cognition in the Elderly: The Northern Manhattan Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Xiaoyan Sun ◽  
Chuanhui Dong ◽  
Bonnie Levin ◽  
Michelle Caunca ◽  
Adina Zeki Al Hazzouri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Executive Function ◽  
Systolic Blood Pressure ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Ethnically Diverse ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Vascular Risk ◽  
Cross Sectional

Background: Increasing evidence suggests that hypertension is a risk factor for cognitive impairment and dementia. The relationship between blood pressure and cognition in a racially and ethnically diverse population remains unclear. Objective: To study association of blood pressure with cognition cross-sectionally and longitudinally in the elderly. Methods: Participants are stroke-free individuals from the racially and ethnically diverse Northern Manhattan Study (NOMAS) (n = 1215). General linear models are constructed to examine blood pressure in relation to cognition cross-sectionally and longitudinally at a five-year follow-up. Results: We found a cross-sectional association of systolic blood pressure (SBP) with word fluency/semantic memory, executive function, and processing speed/visual motor integration (VMI) function. This association was independent of demographics, vascular risk factors, white matter hyperintensity volume (WMHV), and carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT). The cross-sectional association of SBP with processing speed/VMI and executive function was attenuated after adjusting anti-hypertension medications in the models. Baseline SBP was associated with the change of processing speed/VMI function after adjusting vascular risk factors, WMHV, and cIMT at a 5-year follow-up. This longitudinal association was not found after adjusting anti-hypertension medications in the models. Further analyses revealed that individuals with category SBP from <  120 mmHg to≥140 mmHg had a linear decline in processing speed/VMI function at a 5-year follow-up. Conclusion: We show that SBP is negatively associated with cognition cross-sectionally and longitudinally in the elderly. Anti-hypertension treatment eliminates the negative association of SBP with processing speed/VMI function longitudinally. Our findings support the treatment of stage 1 systolic hypertension in the elderly.

scholarly journals Slow Wave Sleep and EEG Delta Spectral Power are Associated with Cognitive Function in Parkinson’s Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Kimberly H. Wood ◽  
Adeel A. Memon ◽  
Raima A. Memon ◽  
Allen Joop ◽  
Jennifer Pilkington ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Slow Wave ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Processing Speed ◽  
Slow Wave Sleep ◽  
Spectral Power ◽  
Z Scores ◽  
Domain Scores

Background: Cognitive and sleep dysfunction are common non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Objective: Determine the relationship between slow wave sleep (SWS) and cognitive performance in PD. Methods: Thirty-two PD participants were evaluated with polysomnography and a comprehensive level II neurocognitive battery, as defined by the Movement Disorders Society Task Force for diagnosis of PD-mild cognitive impairment. Raw scores for each test were transformed into z-scores using normative data. Z-scores were averaged to obtain domain scores, and domain scores were averaged to determine the Composite Cognitive Score (CCS), the primary outcome. Participants were grouped by percent of SWS into High SWS and Low SWS groups and compared on CCS and other outcomes using 2-sided t-tests or Mann-Whitney U. Correlations of cognitive outcomes with sleep architecture and EEG spectral power were performed. Results: Participants in the High SWS group demonstrated better global cognitive function (CCS) (p = 0.01, effect size: r = 0.45). In exploratory analyses, the High SWS group showed better performance in domains of executive function (effect size: Cohen’s d = 1.05), language (d = 0.95), and processing speed (d = 1.12). Percentage of SWS was correlated with global cognition and executive function, language, and processing speed. Frontal EEG delta power during N3 was correlated with the CCS and executive function. Cognition was not correlated with subjective sleep quality. Conclusion: Increased SWS and higher delta spectral power are associated with better cognitive performance in PD. This demonstrates the significant relationship between sleep and cognitive function and suggests that interventions to improve sleep might improve cognition in individuals with PD.

scholarly journals Serum sodium in relation to various domains of cognitive function in the elderly US population

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sohyae Lee ◽  
Jin-young Min ◽  
Beom Kim ◽  
Sang-Won Ha ◽  
Jeohng Ho Han ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Serum Sodium ◽  
Verbal Memory ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Cognitive Change ◽  
Cognitive Test ◽  
P Value ◽  
Digit Symbol Substitution Test ◽  
Cross Sectional

Abstract Background Recent evidence suggests that sodium imbalances may be associated with cognitive impairment; however, the association between specific domains of cognition remains unclear. This study examines the association between serum sodium levels and immediate and delayed verbal memory as measured by the CERAD Word Learning Test (CERAD WLT), executive function as measured by the Animal Fluency test (AFT), and sustained attention, working memory, and processing speed as measured by the Digit Symbol Substitution test (DSST) in the elderly population of the US aged 60 and older who participated in the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (n = 2,541). Methods Cognitive function tests were performed by trained interviewers and sodium levels were measured using indirect ion selective electrode methodology. Results After adjusting for all covariates, quintiles of CERAD WLT scores showed significant positive associations with log-transformed sodium levels (Immediate recall (IR) β = 4.25 (SE = 1.83, p-value 0.027); Delayed recall (DR) β = 6.54 (SE = 1.82, p-value 0.001)). Compared to normal sodium levels, hyponatremia was significantly associated with lower CERAD WLT-IR (β = -0.34, SE = 0.15, p-value 0.035) and CERAD WLT-DR scores (β -0.48, SE = 0.10, p-value < 0.001) and showed borderline significance with AFT scores (β = = -0.38, SE = 0.19, p-value 0.052). Hypernatremia did not show any significant relationships with cognitive test scores, compared to normal sodium levels. Conclusions Our cross-sectional study showed that lower sodium levels were associated with cognitive change, especially regarding memory and executive function.

scholarly journals Gray Matter Volume Covariance Networks, Social Support, and Cognition in Older Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
pp. 1219-1229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly Cotton ◽  
Joe Verghese ◽  
Helena M Blumen
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Executive Function ◽  
Gray Matter ◽  
Gray Matter Volume ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Functional Health ◽  
Matter Volume ◽  
With Memory ◽  
Gray Matter Network

Abstract Objective We examined the neural substrates of social support in older adults. Social support is associated with better outcomes in many facets of aging—including cognitive and functional health—but the underlying neural substrates remain largely unexplored. Methods Voxel-based morphometry and multivariate statistics were used to identify gray matter volume covariance networks associated with social support in 112 older adults without dementia (M age = 74.6 years, 50% female), using the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey. Results A gray matter network associated with overall social support was identified and included prefrontal, hippocampal, amygdala, cingulate, and thalamic regions. A gray matter network specifically associated with tangible social support (e.g., someone to help you if you were confined to bed) was also identified, included prefrontal, hippocampal, cingulate, insular, and thalamic regions, and correlated with memory and executive function. Discussion Gray matter networks associated with overall and tangible social support in this study were composed of regions previously associated with memory, executive function, aging, and dementia. Longitudinal research of the interrelationships between social support, brain structure, and cognition is needed, but strengthening social support may represent a new path toward improving cognition in aging that should be explored.

Sleep Duration, Sleep Apnea, and Gray Matter Volume

2021 ◽  
pp. 089198872098891
Author(s):  
Regina Eun Young Kim ◽  
Robert Douglas Abbott ◽  
Soriul Kim ◽  
Robert Joseph Thomas ◽  
Chang-Ho Yun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Apnea ◽  
Sleep Duration ◽  
Gray Matter ◽  
Gray Matter Volume ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Bootstrap Sampling ◽  
Matter Volume

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of sleep duration on brain structures in the presence versus absence of sleep apnea in middle-aged and older individuals. The study investigated a population-based sample of 2,560 individuals, aged 49-80 years. The presence of sleep apnea and self-reported sleep duration were examined in relation to gray matter volume (GMV) in total and lobar brain regions. We identified ranges of sleep duration associated with maximal GMV using quadratic regression and bootstrap sampling. A significant quadratic association between sleep duration and GMV was observed in total and lobar brain regions of men with sleep apnea. In the fully adjusted model, optimal sleep durations associated with peak GMV between brain regions ranged from 6.7 to 7.0 hours. Shorter and longer sleep durations were associated with lower GMV in total and 4 sub-regions of the brain in men with sleep apnea.

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