Reaction Time Measures Research Articles

Submental transcutaneous electrical stimulation can impact the timing of laryngeal vestibule closure.

BackgroundLaryngeal vestibule closure (LVC) is one of the critical airway protection mechanisms during swallowing. LVC timing impairments during swallowing are among the common causes of airway invasion in patients with dysphagia.ObjectivesTo understand whether using submental transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES) with varying pulse durations can impact the LVC reaction time (LVCrt) and LVC duration (LVCd) measures in healthy adults.MethodsTwenty‐six healthy adults underwent three TES conditions while receiving three trials of 10 ml pureed: no TES, TES with short pulse duration (300 μs) and TES with long pulse durations(700 μs). Two pairs of electrodes were placed diagonally on the submental area. For each active TES condition, the stimulation was increased up to the participant's self‐identified maximum tolerance. Each swallow trial was recorded using videofluoroscopic swallowing study. All data were extracted and analysed offline using VideoPad Video Editor program.ResultsSubmental TES reduced LVCrt during swallowing [F (2, 46) = 7.234, p < .007, ηp2 = .239] but had no significant impact on LVCd [F (2, 50) = .1.118, p < .335, ηp2 = .043]. Furthermore, pulse duration had no distinguished impact on any LVC timing measures.ConclusionTranscutaneous electrical stimulation may benefit patients with dysphagia who suffer from delayed LVC during swallowing. Future studies should seek whether the same physiologic effect can be observed in patients with dysphagia.

Diagnostic accuracy of CompCog: reaction time as a screening measure for mild cognitive impairment.

Reaction time is affected under different neurological conditions but has not been much investigated considering all types of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). This study investigated the diagnostic accuracy of CompCog, a computerized cognitive screening battery focusing on reaction time measurements. A sample of 52 older adults underwent neuropsychological assessments, including CompCog, and medical appointments, to be classified as a control group or be diagnosed with MCI. The accuracy of CompCog for distinguishing between the two groups was calculated. The results from diagnostic accuracy analyses showed that the AUCs of ROC curves were as high as 0.915 (CI 0.837-0.993). The subtest with the highest sensitivity and specificity (choice reaction time subtest) had 91.7% sensitivity and 89.3% specificity. The logistic regression final model correctly classified 92.3% of individuals, with 92.9% specificity and 91.7% sensitivity, and included only four variables from different subtests. In summary, the study showed that reaction time assessed through CompCog is a good screening measure to differentiate between normal aging and MCI. Reaction time measurements in milliseconds were more accurate than correct answers. This test can form part of routine clinical tests to achieve the objectives of screening for MCI, indicating further procedures for investigation and diagnosis and planning interventions.

The attention atlas virtual reality platform maps three-dimensional (3D) attention in unilateral spatial neglect patients: a protocol.

Deficits in visuospatial attention, known as neglect, are common following brain injury, but underdiagnosed and poorly treated, resulting in long-term cognitive disability. In clinical settings, neglect is often assessed using simple pen-and-paper tests. While convenient, these cannot characterise the full spectrum of neglect. This protocol reports a research programme that compares traditional neglect assessments with a novel virtual reality attention assessment platform: The Attention Atlas (AA). The AA was codesigned by researchers and clinicians to meet the clinical need for improved neglect assessment. The AA uses a visual search paradigm to map the attended space in three dimensions and seeks to identify the optimal parameters that best distinguish neglect from non-neglect, and the spectrum of neglect, by providing near-time feedback to clinicians on system-level behavioural performance. A series of experiments will address procedural, scientific, patient, and clinical feasibility domains. Analyses focuses on descriptive measures of reaction time, accuracy data for target localisation, and histogram-based raycast attentional mapping analysis; which measures the individual's orientation in space, and inter- and intra-individual variation of visuospatial attention. We will compare neglect and control data using parametric between-subjects analyses. We present example individual-level results produced in near-time during visual search. The development and validation of the AA is part of a new generation of translational neuroscience that exploits the latest advances in technology and brain science, including technology repurposed from the consumer gaming market. This approach to rehabilitation has the potential for highly accurate, highly engaging, personalised care.

0292 Differential Utility of Psychomotor Vigilance Test vs. Sleep Latency Tests in Healthy Humans

Abstract Introduction The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT), the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), and the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT) are widely used in both sleep research and clinical settings. The PVT measures reaction time to a visual stimulus, whereas time to sleep onset is measured in both the MSLT and MWT, which differ primarily with respect to the instructions (i.e., whether to try to fall asleep vs. stay awake). Compared to sleep latency tests, the PVT is relatively inexpensive and easy to administer, so it is advisable to delimit the conditions under which its administration is most appropriate. Methods A comprehensive search of sleep studies on healthy adults revealed 30 studies in which both PVTs and sleep latency tests were administered – usually to assess the effects of various interventions on sleepiness and vigilance. Two reviewers compiled findings from each study and graded the levels of outcome agreement based on whether a test intervention produced similar effects on vigilance across tests. Results Of the 13 studies that included both PVT and MWT of studies, a high level of agreement (based on the presence and direction significant effect on vigilance) between test outcomes was evident in 8 (61.5%) of the studies. In contrast, a considerably lower percentage of studies in which both the PVT and MSLT were performed (6 of 17 studies; 35.3%) had high agreement between test outcomes. It was also found that the MSLT was more sensitive to interventions (e.g., caffeine, sleep loss, and cognitive workload) than the PVT in the majority of studies in which there was low agreement (5 of 6 studies; 83.3%). Conclusion There is generally more agreement between PVT and MWT measures than between PVT and MSLT measures in studies involving sleep loss. This is most likely because the PVT and MWT both require application of effort to resist sleepiness, whereas the MSLT involves the withdrawal of resistance to sleepiness. This suggests that the PVT is potentially more useful in operational environments (where ability to sustain performance is the primary concern) than in clinical settings (where the focus is on determining the severity of sleepiness). Support (If Any) Department of Defense Military Operational Medicine Research Program (MOMRP)

Estimation of reaction time for birdsongs and effects of background noise and listener’s age

Recordings of birdsong are often used as an auditory signal for visually-challenged people in public spaces in Japan. To examine the detectability of these sounds, we measured reaction times (RTs) for six types of birdsong: Jay, Cuckoo, Himalayan cuckoo, Japanese grosbeak, Japanese white-eye, and Japanese bush warbler. We presented birdsong stimuli with irregular timing to 20 younger and 20 older participants in combination with silence, white noise, or bandpass noise with a center frequency of 1, 2, or 4 kHz. Regardless of the output levels and participant age, the RT for the Jay, Cuckoo, and Himalayan cuckoo songs was lower than 0.75 sec in the silent condition, and the averaged RT obtained by the younger participants could be estimated on the basis of the duration required to reach a specified sound exposure level for the birdsong stimuli. In the noisy conditions, spectral masking via bandpass noise prolonged the RT, while the bandpass noise with a center frequency higher than that of the birdsong tended to shorten the RT, especially in older participants.

Diagnostic and Predictive Ability of Reaction Time Assessments for Adolescent Concussion

Background:Concussed individuals demonstrate significantly slower reaction time than that of healthy controls, particularly in the acute post-injury timeframe. In addition, post-injury reaction time may predict concussion recovery timing. Given that multiple measurement methods exist to assess reaction time post-injury, clinicians treating concussion may desire more information regarding the clinical utility of these methods.Purpose:To determine the clinical utility of two reaction time assessments and identify the ability of each to predict persistent post-concussion symptoms (PPCS), defined as symptoms lasting >28 days post-concussion.Methods:Concussed participants, within 14 days of injury, and healthy controls aged 12 to 18 years completed measures of clinical and smartphone-recorded reaction time. For clinical reaction time testing, participants completed 8 trials of a drop-stick protocol in which participants caught a weighted measuring stick dropped from a standard height between the thumb and palm of the dominant hand. Reaction time was calculated as the distance the stick fell before being caught. Three clinical reaction time outcomes were calculated: mean time, fastest trial, and coefficient of variance among all 8 trials.Smartphone reaction time was assessed through a smartphone application (Reaction Test Pro), which measured the speed at which patients responded to a simple on-screen stimulus. Participants were instructed to tap the phone as quickly as possible when an on-screen button changed color for 30 trials, an approximate test time of 2-3 minutes. Smartphone reaction time was output automatically by the application as the mean of all completed trials.Results:Concussion participants (n=54; 15.1±1.68 years of age; 50% female) assessed 7.0±3.05 days post-injury demonstrated worse performance than healthy controls (n=17; 16.3±1.13 years of age, 47% female) on all measures of reaction time (Table 1). Smartphone-recorded reaction time provided the largest mean difference between groups to distinguish concussed vs control participants. After controlling for age and concussion history, measures of mean clinical and smartphone reaction time were significant predictors of developing PPCS (Table 2).Conclusion:Smartphone-recorded reaction time within 2 weeks of concussion provide the greatest mean difference between concussed and control participants and predicted PPCS development in adolescents. Given the simplicity of smartphone-based measurements in comparison to other options for assessing reaction time, as well as the ubiquity and accessibility of smartphone technology, this technique may be preferred by physicians looking for direct measures of post-concussion reaction time. These assessments may also be used for early identification of patients at increased risk of developing PPCS.Table 1.Between-groups differences for reaction time and AUC values. Data represented as mean ± SD, or median [IQR].Table 2.Logistical regression predicting persistent post-concussion symptoms, controlling for age and concussion history.

Stereopsis Only: Validation of a Monocular Depth Cues Reduced Gamified Virtual Reality with Reaction Time Measurement.

The visual depth perception is composed of monocular and binocular depth cues. Studies show that in absence of binocular depth cues the performance of visuomotor tasks like pointing to or grasping objects is limited. Thus, binocular depth cues are of great importance for motor control required in everyday life. However, binocular depth cues like retinal disparity (basis for stereopsis) might be influenced due to developmental disorders of the visual system. For example, amblyopia in which one eye's visual input is not processed leads to loss of stereopsis. The primary amblyopia treatment is occlusion of the healthy eye to force the amblyopic eye to train. However, improvements in stereopsis are poor. Therefore, binocular treatments arose that equilibrate both eyes' visual input to enable binocular vision. However, most approaches rely on divided stimuli which do not account for loss of stereopsis. We created a Virtual Reality (VR) with reduced monocular depth cues in which a stereoscopic task is shown to both eyes simultaneously, consisting of two balls jumping towards the user. One ball appears closer to the user which must be identified. To evaluate the task performance the reaction time is measured. We validated our approach with 18 participants with stereopsis under three contrast settings including one leading to monocular vision. The number of correct responses reduces from 90% under binocular vision to 52% under monocular vision corresponding to random guessing. Our results indicate that it is possible to disable monocular depth cues and create a dynamic stereoscopic task inside a VR.

A gamified assessment does not identify alterations in cross‐domain cognitive performance with acute moderate hypoxia

INTRODUCTIONThe acute effect of hypoxia on cognition is dependent on the magnitude and duration of the hypoxia, and the assessed cognitive domain. For example, there is little effect of ~1 h exposure to a fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) of ~14% on simple cognitive tasks that measure reaction time. However, complex or novel cognitive tasks can be hindered under the same conditions. These possible cognitive alterations are recognized by the use of supplemental oxygen when flying in unpressurized aircraft for &gt;1 h at altitudes &gt;3048 m. Notably, people often cannot recognize their own hypoxia‐induced symptoms. Thus, there is a need to develop objective assessment tools to consistently identify potential detrimental cognitive effects of moderate hypoxia. One potential solution is the use of gamified cognitive assessments, whereby electronic games can provide metrics of changes in cognitive functioning. However, the effect of moderate hypoxia on gamified cognitive performance has never been explored.PURPOSETest the hypothesis that moderate normobaric hypoxia decreases gamified cross‐domain cognitive performance.METHODSFollowing three consecutive days of practice, twenty‐one healthy adults (27 ± 5 y, 9 females) completed five 1 min rounds of the tablet‐based game Gridshot (Statespace Labs, Inc.) at Baseline and 60 and 90 min after exposure to a chamber with an FiO2 = 14.0 ± 0.2% (hypoxia) and FiO2 = 20.6 ± 0.3% (normoxia). Both conditions were completed on the same day and were administered in a single‐blind, block randomized manner. Gridshot is a novel first‐person shooter style assessment in which a participant’s performance is measured as hits (#), misses (#), hit rate (%), hits per second (#/s), shots per second (#/s), median time to hit (s), and shot precision (i.e., the variability of shot locations relative to the center of targets). Arterial oxyhemoglobin saturation was estimated via forehead pulse oximetry (SpO2). Data were analyzed using ANCOVA with a covariate of Baseline and are presented as adjusted means (95% confidence intervals).RESULTSCompared to normoxia (98 ± 1%), SpO2 was lower (p &lt; 0.001) at 60 (91 ± 3%) and 90 (90 ± 3%) min of hypoxia. A main effect of time was identified for average hits (p = 0.039) and hits per second (p = 0.039), such that, independent of condition, average hits [114 (112, 116) vs. 116 (114, 118)] and hits per second [1.89 (1.86, 1.94) vs. 1.93 (1.89, 1.97)] increased from 60 to 90 min. However, no effect of condition or a condition x time interaction was identified for either average hits (p ≥ 0.255) or hits per second (p ≥ 0.255). There were no condition, time, or condition x time interaction effects identified for average misses (p ≥ 0.138), hit rate (p ≥ 0.057), shots per second (p ≥ 0.247), median time to hit (p ≥ 0.220), and shot precision (p ≥ 0.145).CONCLUSIONThese preliminary findings indicate that, compared to normoxia, 90 min of moderate hypoxia does not elicit measurable alterations in metrics of a first‐person shooter stylistic cross‐domain cognitive assessment. More research is required to better understand the ability of gamified cognitive assessments to detect cognitive alterations caused by environmental stressors.

Preparation of carbon quantum dots using bike pollutant soot: Evaluation of structural, optical and moisture sensing properties

Humidity sensor-based carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have been prepared using waste bike pollutant soot. The synthesized CQDs were characterized using a UV–Visible light chamber, UV–Visible spectroscopy , photoluminescence spectroscopy, TEM, and FTIR research. Initially, the sample was exposed in a closed chamber to UV–Visible light, which produced green luminescence. The photo luminescent spectrometer revealed the emission of green spectra as well as the approximate size of the CQDs. TEM and HRTEM confirmed the spherical shaped particles ∼2 nm in size. The FTIR spectra indicated the existence of a functional group. The sensing element was fabricated using the spin coating method on a borosilicate substrate and was used as a humidity sensor. Carbon quantum dots have excellent humidity sensing properties, as evidenced by measurements of sensitivity, ageing effect, repeatability, reaction, and recovery times. Many humidity sensors based on metal oxides, semiconductors, and polymers have been investigated and developed. The novelty of the work, electrical humidity sensor has been proposed using the waste pollutant soot. • The sustainable, cost effective and rapid synthesis of pollutant bike soot carbon quantum dot. • The prepared were imperiled for electrical humidity sensing. • The first, second, third and fourth layers of sensing characteristics are reported. • The beauty of the experiment is that the electrical humidity sensor is proposed to design by using the waste pollutant soot.

Perceived timing of cutaneous vibration and intracortical microstimulation of human somatosensory cortex

BackgroundIntracortical microstimulation (ICMS) of somatosensory cortex can partially restore the sense of touch. Though ICMS bypasses much of the neuraxis, prior studies have found that conscious detection of touch elicited by ICMS lags behind the detection of cutaneous vibration. These findings may have been influenced by mismatched stimulus intensities, which can impact temporal perception. ObjectiveEvaluate the relative latency at which intensity-matched vibration and ICMS are perceived by a human participant. MethodsOne person implanted with microelectrode arrays in somatosensory cortex performed reaction time and temporal order judgment (TOJ) tasks. To measure reaction time, the participant reported when he perceived vibration or ICMS. In the TOJ task, vibration and ICMS were sequentially presented and the participant reported which stimulus occurred first. To verify that the participant could distinguish between stimuli, he also performed a modality discrimination task, in which he indicated if he felt vibration, ICMS, or both. ResultsWhen vibration was matched in perceived intensity to high-amplitude ICMS, vibration was perceived, on average, 48 ms faster than ICMS. However, in the TOJ task, both sensations arose at comparable latencies, with points of subjective simultaneity not significantly different from zero. The participant could discriminate between tactile modalities above chance level but was more inclined to report feeling vibration than ICMS. ConclusionsThe latencies of ICMS-evoked percepts are slower than their mechanical counterparts. However, differences in latencies are small, particularly when stimuli are matched for intensity, implying that ICMS-based somatosensory feedback is rapid enough to be effective in neuroprosthetic applications.

Effects of stimulus naturalness and contralateral interferers on lexical bias in consonant identification.

Lexical bias is the tendency to perceive an ambiguous speech sound as a phoneme completing a word; more ambiguity typically causes greater reliance on lexical knowledge. A speech sound ambiguous between /g/ and /k/ is more likely to be perceived as /g/ before /ɪft/ and as /k/ before /ɪs/. The magnitude of this difference-the Ganong shift-increases when high cognitive load limits available processing resources. The effects of stimulus naturalness and informational masking on Ganong shifts and reaction times were explored. Tokens between /gɪ/ and /kɪ/ were generated using morphing software, from which two continua were created ("giss"-"kiss" and "gift"-"kift"). In experiment 1, Ganong shifts were considerably larger for sine- than noise-vocoded versions of these continua, presumably because the spectral sparsity and unnatural timbre of the former increased cognitive load. In experiment 2, noise-vocoded stimuli were presented alone or accompanied by contralateral interferers with constant within-band amplitude envelope, or within-band envelope variation that was the same or different across bands. The latter, with its implied spectro-temporal variation, was predicted to cause the greatest cognitive load. Reaction-time measures matched this prediction; Ganong shifts showed some evidence of greater lexical bias for frequency-varying interferers, but were influenced by context effects and diminished over time.

Impact of High-Intensity Circuit Resistance Exercise on Physical Fitness, Inflammation, and Immune Cells in Female Breast Cancer Survivors: A Randomized Control Trial

Questions remain about whether resistance exercise has a positive effect on immune and inflammatory cells. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of 12 weeks of high-intensity circuit resistance exercise (HCRE) on inflammation and immune cells, and physical fitness, of female breast cancer survivors (FBCSs). Thirty FBCSs were randomly assigned to the HCRE (n = 15) and control (n = 15) groups. HRCE was administered for 50 min a day, 2–3 times a week, for 12 weeks. The control group only performed activities of daily living during the study period. Baseline and post-intervention measures included body composition, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, reaction time, balance, inflammation, and immune cell measurements. The results showed that HCRE improved body mass index, body fat, muscle mass, grip strength, back muscle strength, sit-up, whole-body reaction, standing on one leg with eyes closed, Y-balance test, and NKCA in FBCSs. The improvement of physical strength and immune cells of FBCSs was achieved using the 12-week HRCE program. Future studies must analyze various exercise intensities and types, and should be conducted on other cancer survivors. In addition, strategies should be developed to allow FBCSs to participate in resistance training.

Influential Factors and Preliminary Reference Data for a Clinically Feasible, Functional Reaction Time Assessment: The Standardized Assessment of Reaction Time.

Clinical reaction-time (RT) measures are frequently used when examining patients with concussion but do not correlate with functional movement RT. We developed the Standardized Assessment of RT (StART) to emulate the rapid cognitive demands and whole-body movement needed in sport. To assess StART differences across 6 cognitive-motor combinations, examine potential demographic and health history confounders, and provide preliminary reference data for healthy collegiate student-athletes. Prospective, cross-sectional study. Clinical medicine facilities. A total of 89 student-athletes (56 [62.9%] men, 33 [37.1%] women; age = 19.5 ± 0.9 years, height = 178.2 ± 21.7 cm, mass = 80.4 ± 24 kg; no concussion history = 64 [71.9%]). Student-athletes completed health history questionnaires and StART during preseason testing. The StART consisted of 3 movements (standing, single-legged balance, and cutting) under 2 cognitive states (single task and dual task [subtracting by 6's or 7's]) for 3 trials under each condition. The StART trials were calculated as milliseconds between penlight illumination and initial movement. We used a 3 × 2 repeated-measures analysis of variance with post hoc t tests and 95% CIs to assess StART cognitive and movement differences, conducted univariable linear regressions to examine StART performance associations, and reported StART performance as percentiles. All StART conditions differed (P ≤ .03), except single-task standing versus single-task single-legged balance (P = .36). Every 1-year age increase was associated with an 18-millisecond (95% CI = 8, 27 milliseconds) slower single-task cutting RT (P < .001). Female athletes had slower single-task (15 milliseconds; 95% CI = 2, 28 milliseconds; P = .02) and dual-task (28 milliseconds; 95% CI = 2, 55 milliseconds; P = .03) standing RT than male athletes. No other demographic or health history factors were associated with any StART condition (P ≥ .056). The StART outcomes were unique across each cognitive-motor combination, suggesting minimal subtest redundancy. Only age and sex were associated with select outcomes. The StART composite scores may minimize confounding factors, but future researchers should consider age and sex when providing normative data.

Feasibility of Volitional Reaction Time Tests in Athletes: A Systematic Review.

This systematic review aimed to synthesize the current evidence on the feasibility of volitional reaction time (RT) tests to evaluate the information processing abilities of athletes. Four databases were searched, and, finally, 38 studies exploring the reliability, validity, or sensitivity of RT tests were included. Seven studies explored the reliability, which ranged from poor to excellent, while only three studies explored the validity of RT tests. The most important downside of the majority of the implemented RT tests is their nonspecific nature (i.e.,stimulus and response did not resemble the sports actions). Sports scientists should focus on developing RT tests that are specific for each sport and refine the testing procedures to obtain accurate, reproducible, and sensitive measurements of RT.

Social touch in the age of computational ethology: Embracing as a multidimensional and complex behaviour

Social affective touch is an important aspect of close relationships in humans. It has been also observed in many non-human primate species. Despite the high relevance of behaviours like embraces for personal wellbeing and mental health, they remain vastly under-investigated in psychology. This may be because psychology often relies on a limited repertoire of behavioural measurements such as error rates and reaction time measurements. These are, however, insufficient to capture the multidimensional complexity of highly interactive dyadic behaviours like embraces. Based on recent advances in computational ethology in animal models, the rapidly emerging field of human computational ethology utilizes an accessible repertoire of machine learning methods to track and quantify complex natural behaviours. We highlight how such techniques can be utilized to investigate social touch and which preliminary conditions, motor aspects and higher-level interactions need to be considered. Ultimately, integration of computational ethology with mobile neuroscience techniques such as ultraportable EEG systems will allow for an ecologically valid investigation of social affective touch in humans that will advance psychological research of emotions.

The Effect of Noise-Masking Earbuds (SleepBuds) on Reported Sleep Quality and Tension in Health Care Shift Workers: Prospective Single-Subject Design Study.

BackgroundShift work is associated with sleep disorders, which impair alertness and increase risk of chronic physical and mental health disease. In health care workers, shift work and its associated sleep loss decrease provider wellness and can compromise patient care. Pharmacological sleep aids or substances such as alcohol are often used to improve sleep with variable effects on health and well-being.ObjectiveWe tested whether use of noise-masking earbuds can improve reported sleep quality, sleepiness, and stress level in health care shift workers, and increase alertness and reaction time post night shift.MethodsEmergency medicine resident physicians were recruited for a prospective, single-subject design study. Entrance surveys on current sleep habits were completed. For 14 days, participants completed daily surveys reporting sleep aid use and self-rated perceived sleepiness, tension level, and last nights’ sleep quality using an 8-point Likert scale. After overnight shifts, 3-minute psychomotor vigilance tests (PVT) measuring reaction time were completed. At the end of 14 days, participants were provided noise-masking earbuds, which they used in addition to their baseline sleep regimens as they were needed for sleep for the remainder of the study period. Daily sleep surveys, post–overnight shift PVT, and earbud use data were collected for an additional 14 days. A linear mixed effects regression model was used to assess changes in the pre- and postintervention outcomes with participants serving as their own controls.ResultsIn total, 36 residents were recruited, of whom 26 participants who completed daily sleep surveys and used earbuds at least once during the study period were included in the final analysis. The median number of days of earbud use was 5 (IQR 2-9) days of the available 14 days. On days when residents reported earbud use, previous nights’ sleep quality increased by 0.5 points (P<.001, 95% CI 0.23-0.80), daily sleepiness decreased by 0.6 points (P<.001, 95% CI –0.90 to –0.34), and total daily tension decreased by 0.6 points (P<.001, 95% CI –0.81 to –0.32). These effects were more pronounced in participants who reported worse-than-average preintervention sleep scores.ConclusionsNonpharmacological noise-masking interventions such as earbuds may improve daily sleepiness, tension, and perceived sleep quality in health care shift workers. Larger-scale studies are needed to determine this interventions’ effect on other populations of shift workers’ post–night shift alertness, users’ long-term physical and mental health, and patient outcomes.

Evaluation of visual reaction time in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome.

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) has previously been linked to cognitive dysfunction. The aim of this study was to compare visual reaction time (RT) between FMS patients and healthy subjects. The relationship was examined between RT and clinical parameters in FMS patients, and it was aimed to evaluate the effect of drugs used in the treatment of FMS on RT. A total of 112 FMS patients and 110 healthy volunteers were included in this cross-sectional research. Cognitive performance was evaluated with visual RT measurements. FMS patients were assessed using the Fibromyalgia impact questionnaire (FIQ), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). The drugs used in the treatment of FMS were recorded. Significantly prolonged visual RT measurements were detected in FMS patients (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in RT measurements between the patients who did not use drugs and those who were treated with serotonin noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, gabapentinoid and combination therapy (p > 0.05). RT was significantly correlated with FIQ, BDI and PSQI scores in FMS patients (rho: 0.290, p = 0.002 for FIQ; rho: 0.253, p = 0.007 for BDI and rho: 0.312, p = 0.001 for PSQI). No significant correlation was detected between RT scores and FSS values (p > 0.05). Visual RT measurements were seen to be deteriorated in FMS patients. As the disease severity, depression level, and sleep disturbance increased, so the impairment in visual RT values became more prominent. The drugs used in the FMS treatment did not influence the RT scores. Cognitive performance tests should be incorporated in the physical examination and follow-up courses of FMS patients.

Experiences of maltreatment in childhood and attention to facial emotions in healthy young women

Using reaction-time measures, research on the relationship between childhood maltreatment and biased attention to emotional stimuli in adults has obtained inconsistent results. To help clarify this issue, we conducted an eye-tracking study on the link between childhood maltreatment and allocation of attention to facial emotions analyzing gaze behavior in addition to manual reactions. In contrast to prior investigations, we excluded individuals with tendencies to minimize maltreatment experiences from analyses. Gaze behavior and manual response time of 58 healthy women were examined in a dot-probe task in which pairs of emotional (happy, sad, or disgusted) and neutral faces were presented. In our analyses, participants’ affectivity, level of alexithymia, and intelligence were controlled. Entry time and dwell time on facial expressions were used as indicators of attention allocation. Childhood maltreatment showed no effect on response latencies but was associated with shorter entry times on emotional faces and shorter dwell time on disgusted faces. Experiences of childhood maltreatment seem to be linked to an increased early vigilance to emotional social signals and to an attentional avoidance of hostile facial expressions at a later stage of perception. The present results suggest a vigilance-avoidance pattern of attention allocation associated with childhood maltreatment.

Modality Effects Examined by Means of an Online Sentence-Picture Comparison Task.

Are oral sentences accompanied by pictures easier to understand than written sentences accompanied by the same pictures? This question-intensely discussed for more than two decades in educational, psychological, and psycholinguistic research in terms of modality effect in multimedia learning, split-attention effect, or visuospatial load effect-was examined by means of an online sentence-picture comparison task, with participants reading or listening to short sentences accompanied by pictures. Sentences and pictures referred to a conceptually and linguistically basic universe that was constructed from a limited number of familiar objects and characteristics. Mixed repeated-measures ANOVAs were calculated separately for simultaneously and sequentially presented sentence-picture versions, with modality (oral, written), picture complexity (complex, simple), and sentence-picture compatibility (compatible, incompatible) as within-subject factors, and age (6th-graders, adults) as between-subjects factor. The experiment was based on reaction time and acuity measures. The online sentence-picture comparison task requires participants to take note of both components (verbal and pictorial information). The presence of two age groups made it possible to examine modality effects from a developmental point of view by suggesting that learners' written comprehension and monitoring skills at some point equal and then surpass their oral comprehension and monitoring skills. The experiment showed the necessity to interpret modality main effects in the context of their two-way and three-way interactions with other variables since modality effects taken alone do not tell the whole story. The concepts of split attention, temporal contiguity, and element interactivity were discussed in this context.

EEG Power Band Asymmetries in Children with and without Classical Ensemble Music Training

Much evidence shows that music training influences the development of functional brain organization and cerebral asymmetry in an auditory-motor integrative neural system also associated with language and speech. Such overlap suggests that music training could be used for interventions in disadvantaged populations. Accordingly, we investigated neurofunctional changes associated with the influence of socially based classical ensemble music (CEM) training on executive auditory functions of children from low socioeconomic status (LSES), as compared to untrained counterparts. We conducted a novel ROI-focused reanalysis of stimulus-locked event-related electroencephalographic (EEG) band power data previously recorded from fifteen LSES children (9–10 years), with and without CEM, while performing a series of auditory Go/No-Go trials (involving 1100 Hz or 2000 Hz tones). An analysis of collapsed Alpha2, Beta1, Beta2, Delta, and Theta EEG bands showed significant differences in increased and decreased left asymmetry between the CEM and the Comparison group in key frontal and central electrodes typically associated with learning music. Overall, in Go trials, the CEM group responded more quickly and accurately. Linear regression analyses revealed both positive and negative correlations between left hemispheric asymmetry and behavioral measures of PPVT score, auditory sensitivity, Go accuracy, and reaction times. The pattern of results suggests that tone frequency and EEG asymmetries may be attributable to a shift to left lateralization as a byproduct of CEM. Our findings suggest that left hemispheric laterality associated with ensemble music training may improve the efficiency of productive language processing and, accordingly, may be considered as a supportive intervention for LSES children and youth.