Everyday Memory Questionnaire Research Articles

Psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the everyday memory questionnaire - revised (EMQ-R) among the Lebanese population

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the Everyday Memory Questionnaire- Revised (EMQ-R-A) in a sample of Lebanese adults. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in August 2023. A diverse sample of 483 Lebanese adults aged 18 to 60 years from all Lebanese governorates was recruited. Participants completed an Arabic-language questionnaire comprising three sections: socio-demographic characteristics, health-related inquiries, the EMQ-R-A and the Arabic version of the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ). Results: The study’s findings indicated that the EMQ-R-A displayed strong internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.925). Convergent validity was supported by a significant correlation with PRMQ. Test-retest results demonstrated strong reliability with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.925. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a three-factor model including retrieval related factors, attentional tracking related factors, and other factors. The factors labeled “Retrieval” and “Attentional Tracking” elucidate aspects of memory retrieval system efficacy and attention-related challenges. Higher EMQ-R-A scores were found to be associated with the female gender, lower attention, physical inactivity, lower educational levels, and higher number of comorbid disorders. Conclusion: The EMQ-R-A exhibits good validity and reliability. The identified factors associated with memory decline underscore the importance of addressing lifestyle factors, such as promoting physical activity, better educational attainment, and addressing comorbid health conditions, to potentially mitigate memory challenges.

Measuring Change over Time on Cognitive Screening Measures: An Evaluation of the Psychometric Properties of ACE-III, CBI-R, and EMQ for the Purpose of Dementia Screening

Introduction: Cognitive screening measures are an established part of a dementia assessment and often include measures of subjective difficulties, e.g., Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ), informant-rated difficulty, Cambridge Behavioural Inventory – Revised (CBI-R), and objective cognitive assessments like Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination (ACE-III). While these measures have validity for the purpose of diagnosing dementia, in clinical practice they are often used outside of their evidence base for the purpose of cognitive re-assessment. The current study sought to evaluate the psychometric properties for the repeated use of these assessments. Methods: This study used a longitudinal design, which included 49 healthy controls, 33 people with subjective memory difficulties, and 10 people with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) being assessed twice, with approximately a 1-year interval between assessments. Results: The EMQ has adequate re-test reliability (r = 0.78), but people with an AD diagnosis rated their memory as better than those with SMD, making it unsuitable as a measure. The CBI-R had moderate re-test reliability (r = 0.62). However, deterioration on the CBI-R was not useful for diagnosing AD. The ACE-III has high re-test reliability (r = 0.89). A change of five was associated with reasonable classification accuracy for identifying AD and achieved statistical significance. Conclusion: Using a 1-year interval, of the three measures used in this study, only the ACE-III total score may be a useful measure of change over time, although it should be applied cautiously due to the lack of representativeness of the sample, and change scores should always be triangulated with other forms of evidence of deterioration.

Examining the Utility of a Multiple Group Membership Intervention for Alleviating the Effects of Age-Based Stereotype Threat on Older adults’ Memory Performance

ABSTRACT This study examined the effectiveness of a multiple group membership intervention for reducing the negative effects of age-based stereotype threat (ABST) on older adults’ objective memory performance and subjective memory concerns. Healthy older adults (N = 68) were randomly allocated to an ABST + threat-removal (ABST+TR) or ABST + active-control (ABST+AC) condition. After activating ABST, the ABST+TR condition completed a group-listing task and the ABST+AC condition completed a meal-listing task. Participants then completed the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) and Everyday Memory Questionnaire – Revised. One significant difference was found in memory performance between conditions; specifically, after controlling for age, gender, and number of items listed, those in the ABST+TR condition performed significantly better on the RAVLT memory interference trial. Further, listing a greater number of group memberships was associated with better memory performance in the ABST+TR condition. No significant difference was found in subjective memory concerns between the ABST+TR condition and the ABST+AC condition. Overall, the current findings indicated that raising the salience of multiple group memberships offered limited protection for older adults’ cognitive test performance in the context of ABST.

Anxiety's correlation with sleepiness and memory among security officers during Covid-19 pandemic.

In the working population especially among older adults, anxiety problems have grown dramatically. This element has a significant impact on employee absenteeism and problems with physical and mental health. It was widely known that security personnel had several physical and mental difficulties during their various work hours. It is important to investigate the effects of anxiety on them. The present study aims to provide insights into the prevalence of anxiety disorders and explore the correlations between anxiety symptoms, sleep, and memory during the COVID-19 pandemic. To conduct a cross-sectional study, 42 older adult participants between the ages of sixty to seventy years were chosen and the procedure was explained.Data were gathered by giving instructions on how to complete the self-reported Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment -7 (GAD-7), the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and the revised Everyday Memory Questionnaire. A total of 36 out of 42 participants (85.71%) experienced moderate to severe anxiety. Anxiety and sleep had a correlation of 0.8, while anxiety and memory had a correlation of 0.87 with a positive EMQ-R relationship. Moreover, there was a statistically significant association between sleep and memory, with a positive correlation of 0.73. The study concludes that, there is a substantial prevalence of anxiety accompanied by notable insomnia and memory problems in elderly security officers. Our findings indicate a clear relationship between sleep disturbances, memory issues, and most prevalent anxiety symptoms. These results emphasize the importance of incorporating mental health assessments and addressing an effective treatment for anxiety.

High-fat-sugar diet is associated with impaired hippocampus-dependent memory in humans

Overconsumption of high-fat and high-sugar (HFS) diet may affect the hippocampus, and consequently, memory functions. Yet, converging evidence is needed to demonstrate that the type of memory affected by HFS diet consumption is indeed hippocampus dependent. Moreover, the extent to which HFS diet can also affect executive functioning, and indirectly affect memory requires further examination. In this online study, we asked 349 young adults to report their HFS diet consumption and complete a word memory task, the Everyday Memory Questionnaire, and importantly two memory tasks that have been shown to robustly engage the hippocampus, i.e., the Pattern Separation and Associative Memory Tasks. Participants also completed two executive functioning tasks, the Trail Making Task (TMT) and the Stroop Task. These measures assess attention/cognitive flexibility and the ability to inhibit cognitive interference, respectively. After controlling for confounding variables, we found that participants who reported higher level consumption of a HFS diet performed worse on the Pattern Separation Task and that higher HFS intake was significantly associated with poorer TMT task performance and longer Stroop average reaction time (RT). TMT and Stroop RT scores indicative of reduced executive function also partially mediated the relationship between HFS diet and memory performance on the pattern separation task. Taken together, our results provide converging evidence that HFS diet may impair hippocampus-dependent memory. HFS diet may also affect executive functioning and indirectly impair memory function. The findings are consistent with human subject and animal studies and call for further investigations on the psychological and neural mechanisms underlying the dietary effects on cognitive processes.

A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel Study Investigating the Efficacy of a Whole Coffee Cherry Extract and Phosphatidylserine Formulation on Cognitive Performance of Healthy Adults with Self-Perceived Memory Problems.

Cognition refers to brain functions including memory, learning, and thought processing and is increasingly important to individuals. However, impairment of cognitive function is a concern among North American adults. Therefore, effective and reliable treatments are needed. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study examined the effects of 42days of Neuriva® supplementation, a whole coffee cherry extract and phosphatidylserine supplement, on memory, accuracy, focus and concentration and learning among 138 healthy adults (40-65years) with self-reported memory problems. Plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, Computerized Mental Performance Assessment System (COMPASS) tasks, the Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ), and Go/No-Go tests were assessed at baseline and day42. As compared to placebo, Neuriva® supplementation elicited greater improvements at day42 in numeric working memory COMPASS task accuracy outcomes (p ≤ 0.024) which assessed memory, accuracy, and focus and concentration, and reaction time outcomes (p ≤ 0.031) which assessed memory as well as focus and concentration. Neuriva® supplementation improved overall accuracy (p = 0.035) in the picture recognition task that assessed memory, accuracy, and learning compared to placebo. No significant differences between groups were observed for BDNF, the EMQ, or Go/No-Go tests. Results suggest 42days of Neuriva® supplementation was safe, well tolerated, and beneficial in improving memory, accuracy, focus and concentration, and learning in a healthy adult population with self-reported memory problems.

Underpinning the neurological source of executive function following cross hemispheric tDCS stimulation

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a promising technique for enhancement of executive functions in healthy as well as neurologically disturbed patients. However, the evidence regarding the neuropsychological and behavioral change with neurophysiological shifts as well as the mechanism of tDCS action as evidenced by activation of neuronal sources important for executive functions have remained unaddressed. The study thereby endeavors to (1) determine the neuropsychological, behavioral, and neurophysiological change induced with five sessions of bilateral tDCS stimulation and (2) identify putative neuronal sources related to the executive functions responsible for neuropsychological and behavioral change. For this single blinded study, a total of 40 healthy participants, randomly allocated to active (n = 19) or sham (n = 21) groups completed five sessions of 2 mA tDCS stimulation administered over Dorso-Lateral Prefrontal Cortex (DLPFC) (F3 as anode, F4 as cathode). Repeated measure analysis was performed on neuropsychological (Everyday Memory Questionnaire and Mindful Attention Awareness Scale), and behavioral assessment (n-Back and Stroop tests) to investigate within and between group differences. Pre and post neurophysiological (Electroencephalogram) results showed that bilateral tDCS stimulation activates cortical regions responsible for executive functions including updation (working memory) and inhibition (interference control or attention). Multiple sessions of bilateral tDCS stimulation results in a significant increase in theta, alpha, and beta-band activity in the DLPFC, cingulate and parietal cortex. This study provides evidence that tDCS can be used for performance enhancement of executive functions in able-bodied people.

Post-acute symptoms 3-15 months after COVID-19 among unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals with a breakthrough infection

ObjectiveWe aimed to describe post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) related symptoms 3-15 months after a positive test in SARS-CoV-2 unvaccinated and vaccinated participants with a breakthrough infection. MethodsParticipants of the Norwegian COVID-19 cohort, without a positive SARS-CoV-2 test, completed a questionnaire about PASC-related symptoms between November 2020 and January 2021. About a year later, a second questionnaire (which also included the Everyday Memory Questionnaire [EMQ]-13) was completed by the same participants, most still without a positive SARS-CoV-2 test, but also by unvaccinated and vaccinated participants with a positive test 3-15 months before the questionnaire. Laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 status (positive or negative swab test determined by reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction) at the time of completing the questionnaire was ascertained from the Mandatory Norwegian Surveillance System for Communicable Diseases. ResultsNo differences were found in the self-reported PASC symptoms, dyspnea, fatigue, smell/taste changes, concentration problems, or the EMQ-13 score between unvaccinated and vaccinated participants 3-15 months after the positive test. Fewer memory problems were reported among vaccinated than unvaccinated participants. ConclusionSARS-CoV-2 vaccines offer minor protection against PASC symptoms, although fewer memory problems were reported among the vaccinated than the unvaccinated participants.

Paranormal Experience Profiles and Their Association With Variations in Executive Functions: A Latent Profile Analysis.

This study investigated relationships between inter-class variations in paranormal experience and executive functions. A sample of 516 adults completed self-report measures assessing personal encounter-based paranormal occurrences (i.e., Experience, Practitioner Visiting, and Ability), executive functions (i.e., General Executive Function, Working and Everyday Memory, and Decision Making) together with Emotion Regulation and Belief in the Paranormal. Paranormal belief served as a measure of convergent validity for experience-based phenomena. Latent profile analysis (LPA) combined experience-based indices into four classes based on sample subpopulation scores. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) then examined interclass differences. Results revealed that breadth of paranormal experience was associated with higher levels of executive functioning difficulties for General Executive Function, Working Memory, Decision Making, and Belief in the Paranormal. On the Everyday Memory Questionnaire, scores differed on Attention Tracking (focus loss) and Factor 3 (visual reconstruction), but not Retrieval (distinct memory failure). In the case of the Emotion Regulation Scale, class scores varied on Expressive Suppression (control), however, no difference was evident on Cognitive Reappraisal (reframing). Overall, inter-class comparisons identified subtle differences in executive functions related to experience. Since the present study was exploratory, sampled only a limited subset of executive functions, and used subjective, self-report measures, further research is necessary to confirm these outcomes. This should employ objective tests and include a broader range of executive functions.

Subjective Cognitive Dysfunction in Patients with Dizziness and Vertigo

Introduction: Patients with vestibular disorders sometimes report cognitive difficulties, but there is no consensus about the type or degree of cognitive complaint. We therefore investigated subjective cognitive dysfunction in a well-defined sample of neuro-otology patients and used demographic factors and scores from a measure of depression, anxiety, and stress to control for potential confounding factors. Methods: We asked 126 neuro-otology clinic outpatients whether they experienced difficulties with thinking, memory, or concentration as a result of dizziness or vertigo. They and 42 nonvertiginous control subjects also completed the Neuropsychological Vertigo Inventory (NVI, which measures cognitive, emotional, vision, and motor complaints), the Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ), and Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (DASS). Results: In the initial interview questions, 60% of patients reported experiencing cognitive difficulties. Cognitive questionnaire scores were positively correlated with the overall DASS score and to a lesser extent with age and gender. Therefore, we compared patients and controls on the NVI and EMQ, using these mood and demographic variables as covariates. Linear regression analyses revealed that patients scored significantly worse on the total NVI, NVI cognitive composite, and 3 individual NVI cognition subscales (Attention, Space Perception, and Time Perception), but not the EMQ. Patients also scored significantly worse on the NVI Emotion and Motor subscales. Conclusions: Patients with dizziness and vertigo reported high levels of cognitive dysfunction, affecting attention, perceptions of space and time. Although perceptions of cognitive dysfunction were correlated with emotional distress, they were significantly elevated in patients over and above the impact of depression, anxiety, or stress.

What Supports the Development of Children’s Prospective Memory? Examining the Relation between Children’s Prospective Memory, Memory Strategy Use, and Parent Scaffolding

ABSTRACT Remembering to carry out intended actions in the future, known as prospective memory (PM), is an important cognitive ability. In daily life, individuals remember to perform future tasks that might rely on effortful processes (monitoring) but also habitual tasks that might rely on more automatic processes. The development of PM across childhood in laboratory contexts is well understood, but little is known about the social context in which children develop their PM skills in everyday life. In the current study, three hundred and one parents reported on their 3-to 11-year-old child’s PM, child’s strategy use, and on their own scaffolding of their child’s PM using the Children’s Everyday Memory Questionnaire (CEMQ; adapted from the Prospective Memory Questionnaire). Preliminary analyses showed that the PM items on the CEMQ were reliable and composed of two components (a PM and a PM strategy use subscale). Our results showed that children’s PM and use of memory strategies, as reported by their parents, increased with age. Further, more frequent parent scaffolding was related to better PM in children. These relations were also explored separately for older and younger children. Notably, parents of younger, 3-to 6-year-olds reported scaffolding them more frequently with age, while parents of older, 7-to 11-year-olds reported scaffolding them less frequently with age. Open-ended responses revealed that parents used verbal reminders and children used external aids most frequently. Overall, parent scaffolding appears to impact children’s PM, but future research is needed to identify the causal direction of these relations.

Everyday Memory in People with Down Syndrome.

Although memory functions in people with Down Syndrome (DS) have been studied extensively, how well people with DS remember things about everyday life is not well understood. In the current study, 31 adolescents/young adults with DS and 26 with intellectual disabilities (ID) of mixed etiology (not DS) participated. They completed an everyday memory questionnaire about personal facts and recent events (e.g., school name, breakfast). They also completed a standard laboratory task of verbal long-term memory (LTM) where they recalled a list of unrelated words over trials. Results did not indicate impaired everyday memory, but impaired verbal LTM, in people with DS relative to people with mixed ID. Furthermore, the laboratory verbal LTM task predicted everyday memory for both groups after taking into account mental age equivalent. Our research showed both an independence and a connection between everyday memory and the standard laboratory memory task and has important research and clinical implications.

Correlation between hydration status and memory in nursing students

Hydration status is a significant component to keep the functions of bodywork system. Memory is one of the cognitive brain functions which enables human to do daily activities optimally. The purpose of this study was to determine the correlation between hydration status and memory in nursing students. This research employed a comparative analytical method and involved 152 students. The measurement of hydration status was carried out by calculating urine specific gravity using a urinometer while the Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ) was used to measure memory. The independent t-test employed to identify the relationship between hydration status and memory. This research reveals that there is a significant difference between the value of average memory score in students who do not suffer from dehydration and that in students who suffer from dehydration (p=0.003; t=3.040). Maintaining the balance of dehydration status is crucial to make the memory work optimally.

Therapist competence and clinical outcome in the rehabilitation of memory following traumatic brain injury trial

ABSTRACT Objectives: Therapist competencies when delivering an intervention can impact clinical outcomes. However, the relationship between competence and outcome in the context of memory rehabilitation has not previously been investigated. We aimed to evaluate whether therapist competencies in delivering a group-based memory rehabilitation intervention, as part of a randomized-controlled trial, was associated with changes in clinical outcome in the participants with traumatic brain injury. Method: Outcome data on the Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ) and Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) were obtained for 24 participants of the memory rehabilitation trial. Video recordings of intervention sessions delivered by six therapists were coded using a checklist designed to evaluate therapist competence in group facilitation. Results: Therapists demonstrated consistently high levels of competency in facilitating the memory group. Correlational analyses showed that there was a non-significant weak association between EMQ and therapist competence (r = .28, p = .18), and between GAS and therapist competence for short- and long-term goals (r = −.33, p = .12 and r = −.24, p = .25, respectively). Conclusions: We found no significant association between competence and outcome in this memory rehabilitation trial. This may reflect insufficient variability in therapist competence and/or the nature of the clinical outcome measures used. Further research is needed to understand competence-outcome relationships in cognitive rehabilitation.

Prevalence of cognitive frailty and associations with other frailty domains in a Spanish community‐dwelling sample

AbstractBackgroundThe concept of cognitive frailty has been defined as the simultaneous presence of frailty and mild cognitive impairment in absence of dementia, although recent approaches has considered cognitive frailty as a distinct construct and has taken into account different domains of physical frailty (De Roeck et al., 2020). The aim of the present study is to analyze the prevalence of cognitive frailty in groups with different degrees of cognitive impairment.MethodA total of 285 community‐dwelling middle‐age and older adults, aged >50 years, from Galicia and Valencia (northwest and southeast of Spain respectively) participated. Cognitive function was assessed using MoCA test, and cognitive complaints with the Spanish version of the Everyday Memory Questionnaire. Participants were classified as objective cognitively impaired, cognitively unimpaired, and cognitively unimpaired with subjective cognitive complaints. Physical frailty criteria included: a) unintentional weight loss or lack of appetite in the last three months; b) self‐reported exhaustion, measured with the General Health Questionnaire‐12 question about affective state; c) weakness, measured with a dynamometer to determine handgrip strength; d) slow walking speed, measured through a timed‐up and go task; and e) low physical activity, measured with the reduced Spanish version of the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire (VREM). Participants were classified as robust if they met none of the criteria, pre‐frail if they met 1 or 2 criteria, and frail if they met 3 or more criteria, corrected by gender and age.ResultsThe prevalence of frailty was 2.5% in the cognitively unimpaired group, 12.2% in the group with cognitive complaints, and 9.6% in the group with objective cognitive impairment (chi‐square=18.37;p<0.01) (Table 1). The co‐occurrence with physical frailty is more frequent with slow walking speed and, in the group with complaints, with self‐reported exhaustion.ConclusionThe prevalence of physical frailty was higher in both cognitive complaints and cognitive impairment groups, compared with the cognitively unimpaired group. The subjective cognitive complaints can play a relevant role in characterizing the relation between physical and cognitive impairments.

Beyond physiotherapy and pharmacological treatment for fibromyalgia syndrome: tailored tACS as a new therapeutic tool

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a complex pain disorder, characterized by diffuse pain and cognitive disturbances. Abnormal cortical oscillatory activity may be a promising biomarker, encouraging non-invasive neurostimulation techniques as a treatment. We aimed to modulate abnormal slow cortical oscillations by delivering transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) and physiotherapy to reduce pain and cognitive symptoms. This was a double-blinded, randomized, crossover trial conducted between February and September 2018 at the Rehabilitation Unit of a teaching Hospital (NCT03221413). Participants were randomly assigned to tACS or random noise stimulation (RNS), 5 days/week for 2 weeks followed by ad hoc physiotherapy. Clinical and cognitive assessments were performed at T0 (baseline), T1 (after stimulation), T2 (1 month after stimulation). Electroencephalogram (EEG) spectral topographies recorded from 15 participants confirmed slow-rhythm prevalence and provided tACS tailored stimulation parameters and electrode sites. Following tACS, EEG alpha1 ([8–10] Hz) activity increased at T1 (p = 0.024) compared to RNS, pain symptoms assessed by Visual Analog Scale decreased at T1 (T1 vs T0p = 0.010), self-reported cognitive skills and neuropsychological scores improved both at T1 and T2 (Patient-Reported Outcomes in Cognitive Impairment, T0–T2, p = 0.024; Everyday memory questionnaire, T1 compared to RNS, p = 0.012; Montréal Cognitive Assessment, T0 vs T1, p = 0.048 and T0 vs T2, p = 0.009; Trail Making Test B T0–T2, p = 0.034). Psychopathological scales and other neuropsychological scores (Trail Making Test-A; Total Phonemic Fluency; Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised; Rey–Osterrieth Complex Figure) improved both after tACS and RNS but earlier improvements (T1) were registered only after tACS. These results support tACS coupled with physiotherapy in treating FMS cognitive symptoms, pain and subclinical psychopathology.

Comparison of Cognitive Rehabilitation versus Donepezil Therapy on Memory Performance, Attention, Quality of Life, and Depression among Multiple Sclerosis Patients.

Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease of the central nervous system that affects cognitive performance and leads to depression and decreased quality of life (QOL). The current study aims to assess the effects of cognitive rehabilitation versus donepezil therapy on memory, attention, depression, and QOL in MS patients compared to placebo and control groups. Methods Eighty MS patients were randomly selected from parallel randomized trials and divided into four groups: A: cognitive rehabilitation (10 sessions of 120 minutes), B: control (no intervention), C: donepezil (10 mg daily), and D: placebo. Patients received the intervention for three months. They were assessed for cognitive status, depression, and QOL prior to the intervention and immediately after that using abbreviated mental test (AMT), prospective and retrospective memory questionnaire (PRMQ), everyday memory questionnaire (EMQ), digit span, MSQOL-54, and second edition Beck depression inventory (BDI). We compared scores between groups after the intervention, as well as the progression of scores in every single group. Results. The cognitive rehabilitation group showed improvement in EMQ, RPMQ, digit span, physical and mental health subscales of MSQOL54, and depression (P < 0.05). We observed the same effect for donepezil except for the digit span test (P = 0.15). Intergroup comparison of scores showed the superiority of cognitive rehabilitation over donepezil in digit span, depression, and mental health scores. Conclusion Both donepezil and cognitive rehabilitation effectively improve memory performance, attention, depression, and QOL in MS patients. Cognitive rehabilitation is superior altogether. This study is registered with the Iranian registry of clinical trials http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/IRCT2016042227522N1.

Short sleep duration and high exposure to quick returns are associated with impaired everyday memory in shift workers

PurposeTo investigate the relationship between self-reported everyday memory problems the last month, and: (a) shift work schedule, (b) night shifts and quick returns worked the last year, and (c) sleep duration the last month. MethodsIn all, 1,275 nurses completed the Everyday Memory Questionnaire – revised, and answered questions about shift work exposure and sleep duration. We performed multiple linear regression analyses with memory score as dependent variable, and the shift work exposure variables as well as sleep duration as predictors, while adjusting for potential confounders. FindingsHigh exposure to quick returns (β = .10, p < .05) and short sleep duration (β = .10, p < .05) were both positively associated with memory problems, whereas shift work schedule, long sleep duration, night shift exposure, and low and moderate exposure to quick returns were not. DiscussionFrequent insufficient time for rest between shifts as well as short sleep was associated with poorer everyday memory.

0159 Reduced REM Sleep Percent in Frequent Cannabis Versus Non-Cannabis Users

Abstract Introduction THC (the main psychoactive component of cannabis) has been shown to suppress REM sleep and decrease sleep latency, although this is not consistently replicated. Increased dream vividness is reported to occur in abstinent cannabis users, although dream quality in active users is unstudied. The current study aimed to assess the effects of cannabis use compared to non-use on objective sleep measures, dream reports, and self-reported anxiety, memory, and sleep quality. To collect objective sleep data we piloted the use of a portable PSG headband that allows EEG and EOG recording at home. Methods 12 regular cannabis users (&amp;gt; 3 days per week) &amp; 9 non-users (aged 19 - 27; 43% female) participated; participants used no other drugs or alcohol on study nights. The most common form of cannabis use was smoking in joints with tobacco (range = 1 - 15 per day). Participants wore the PSG headband (the Hypnodyne ZMax) over 2 nights at home (2nd night used for analysis), and were instructed to awaken 4 times across the night to fill out brief dream reports. Objective sleep measures included TST, Sleep latency, REM latency, and REM percent. Self-report measures included the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Everyday Memory Questionnaire, and State-Trait Anxiety Index. Dream measures included recall frequency, word length, and three attributes rated on a 1–7 Likert scale - sensory vividness, emotional intensity, and bizarreness. Results There were no group differences on self-report measures. Cannabis users showed longer REM latency (t=2.23, p=.04) and lower REM% (U=22, p=.02); there were no other objective group differences. Cannabis users reported higher bizarreness in their dreams (t=2.07, p=.05); there were no other dream differences. Conclusion The study presents a novel approach to assess sleep at home and cannabis use. Significant differences emerged between users and non-users on REM latency, REM%, and dream bizarreness. Support N/A

Factors affecting cognition and emotion in patients with traumatic brain injury.

BACKGROUND:Cognitive and emotional disturbances are common serious issues in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, predictors associated with neuropsychological functions were not consistent.OBJECTIVE:To investigate factors affecting cognition and emotion in patients with TBI, we evaluated executive function, memory, and emotion based on injury severity and lesion location.METHODS:Neuropsychological outcomes of 80 TBI patients were evaluated via Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Color Trail Test (CTT), Controlled Oral Word Association Test (COWAT), Everyday Memory Questionnaire (EMQ), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and Agitated Behavior Scale (ABS). WCST, CTT, and COWAT assessed executive function; EMQ assessed everyday memory; and GDS, STAI, and ABS assessed emotion. Patients were categorized according to lateralization of lesion and existence of frontal lobe injury.RESULTS:Patients with longer duration of loss of consciousness (LOC) showed more severe deficits in everyday memory and agitated behaviors. The frontal lesion group showed poorer performance in executive function and higher agitation than the non-frontal lesion group. Patients with bilateral frontal lesion showed greater deficits in executive function and were more depressed than unilateral frontal lesion groups. Especially in those unilateral frontal lesion groups, right side frontal lesion group was worse on executive function than left side frontal lesion group.CONCLUSIONS:Duration of LOC and lesion location are main parameters affecting executive function, everyday memory, and emotion in neuropsychological outcomes following TBI, suggesting that these parameters need to be considered for cognitive rehabilitation interventions.