Abstract
BackgroundPhysical activity reduces the incidence and progression of cognitive impairment. Cognitive-motor dual-task training, which requires dividing attention between cognitive tasks and exercise, may improve various cognitive domains; therefore, we examined the effect of dual-task training on the executive functions and on plasma amyloid β peptide (Aβ) 42/40 ratio, a potent biomarker of Alzheimer’s disease, in healthy elderly people.MethodsTwenty-seven sedentary elderly people participated in a 12-week randomized, controlled trial. The subjects assigned to the dual-task training (DT) group underwent a specific cognitive-motor dual-task training, and then the clinical outcomes, including cognitive functions by the Modified Mini-Mental State (3MS) examination and the Trail-Making Test (TMT), and the plasma Aβ 42/40 ratio following the intervention were compared with those of the control single-task training (ST) group by unpaired t-test.ResultsAmong 27 participants, 25 completed the study. The total scores in the 3MS examination as well as the muscular strength of quadriceps were equally improved in both groups after the training. The specific cognitive domains, “registration & recall”, “attention”, “verbal fluency & understanding”, and “visuospatial skills” were significantly improved only in the DT group. Higher scores in “attention”, “verbal fluency & understanding”, and “similarities” were found in the DT group than in the ST group at post-intervention. The absolute changes in the total (8.5 ± 1.6 vs 2.4 ± 0.9, p = 0.004, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.75―3.39) and in the scores of “attention” (1.9 ± 0.5 vs −0.2 ± 0.4, p = 0.004, 95 % CI 2.25―9.98) were greater in the DT group than in the ST group. We found no changes in the TMT results in either group. Plasma Aβ 42/40 ratio decreased in both groups following the training (ST group: 0.63 ± 0.13 to 0.16 ± 0.03, p = 0.001; DT group: 0.60 ± 0.12 to 0.25 ± 0.06, p = 0.044), although the pre- and post-intervention values were not different between the groups for either measure.ConclusionsCognitive-motor dual-task training was more beneficial than single-task training alone in improving broader domains of cognitive functions of elderly persons, and the improvement was not directly due to modulating Aβ metabolism.
Highlights
Physical activity reduces the incidence and progression of cognitive impairment
As Lundin-Olsson et al have long ago advised in a simple and clear manner, “Stop walking when talking” [2], elderly people with dementia are susceptible to falling when they divide their attention between two processes, which require executive cerebral functions
An evaluation of the effect of dual-task exercise training, which imposes simultaneous motor and cognitive tasks, is necessary because as indicated above, it is probable that dual-task training raises executive functions, including attention, in elderly people
Summary
Physical activity reduces the incidence and progression of cognitive impairment. Cognitive-motor dual-task training, which requires dividing attention between cognitive tasks and exercise, may improve various cognitive domains; we examined the effect of dual-task training on the executive functions and on plasma amyloid β peptide (Aβ) 42/40 ratio, a potent biomarker of Alzheimer’s disease, in healthy elderly people. Exercise intervention improves the essential physical elements needed to avoid falling, such as balance, muscle strength, and agility, and cognitive functions, even in the aged individuals at high risk for dementia [5, 6]. For most of these studies, the extent of physical activity was estimated by the time spent on exercise. An evaluation of the effect of dual-task exercise training, which imposes simultaneous motor and cognitive tasks, is necessary because as indicated above, it is probable that dual-task training raises executive functions, including attention, in elderly people
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