Fluency Test Research Articles

Normative Data for the Famous People Fluency Test in the Adult French-Quebec Population and Validation Study in Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease.

The production of words in verbal fluency tests relies heavily on executive functions and linguistic abilities. New tests such as the famous people fluency test can also be useful in clinical practice and research. This test, in which participants are asked to name so many famous people, has the potential to distinguish healthy individuals from participants with neurological disorders such as mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease. The aim of this study was to determine the psychometric validity of the test (Study 1) and to provide normative data in the adult population of French Quebec for the famous people fluency test (Study 2). The results of the normative study, derived from a sample of 378 healthy individuals between the ages of 50 and 92, showed that age and educational level significantly influence performance on the test. Therefore, percentile ranks were calculated for performance on the famous people fluency test, stratified for these two variables. The results of Study 2 showed that the test differentiated the performance of healthy participants from the performance of participants with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease. The results also showed that the famous people fluency test has adequate convergent validity, established with a semantic fluency test, and that the results showed good stability over time (test-retest validity). Norms and psychometric data for the famous people fluency test will improve the ability of clinicians and researchers to better recognize executive and language impairments associated with pathological conditions.

Using semantic verbal fluency to estimate the relative and absolute vocabulary size of bilinguals: An exploratory study of children and adolescents

IntroductionThe full assessment of bilingual children often involves at least one language for which formal vocabulary tests are lacking and which the examiner does not speak. We examined, in a sample of children with typical development (TD), whether a semantic verbal fluency task, typically used in research as a measure of executive function, could be used in the place of a formal vocabulary test to estimate vocabulary knowledge when formal tests are not available. Method113 TD monolingual French speakers and TD bilinguals and with varying degrees of exposure to French, age 6 to 17 years, completed tests of vocabulary knowledge and semantic verbal fluency. A subset of 64 participants spoke French and English and were tested in both languages. Verbal fluency measures calculated using a traditional method which uses specific rules for superordinate categories and for animals of different sex and age and a simplified scoring method which simply counts all words produced, included the total number of words produced in each language, Total Vocabulary and Conceptual Vocabulary measures combining both languages, as well as analyses of lexical composition and word frequency within the study sample. ResultsLinear regressions revealed that the number of words produced predicted vocabulary size in a language-specific way, with slightly stronger predictions made by the simplified scoring method. As expected, bilinguals produced more words and more unique words in their language of greater exposure, while different exposure groups were equivalent in measures combining both languages, including their Total vocabulary and Conceptual vocabulary. Producing unusual words (infrequently produced in the study sample) indicated higher vocabulary scores. ConclusionsThis study supports the use of the verbal fluency task as a quick and simple tool to obtain a rough estimate of vocabulary size in TD monolinguals and bilinguals. This tool shows promise as well in clinical work with other populations, subject to further verification.

ALEXITHYMIA: PREVALENCE AND ASSOCIATION WITH EXECUTIVE FUNCTION AMONG PHYSIOTHERAPY STUDENTS IN KARACHI, PAKISTAN

Background of the Study: Alexithymia is a set of cognitive traits, including the inability to verbalize and recognize one’s emotions. Physiotherapy students are more vulnerable to developing Alexithymia due to their academic workload and intense clinical postings. This neurobiological deficit involves frontal lobe dysfunction and reduced anterior cingulate cortex function, impacting executive function. This study aims to determine the prevalence of Alexithymia and its association with executive function among physiotherapy students. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among physiotherapy students using the Toronto Alexithymia scale (TAS-20) to assess prevalence and executive function. It was evaluated through two neurophysiological tasks: Trail making and Verbal fluency tests. Data was analyzed using SPSS Version 26.0. Result: Out of 400 participants, the private license of Alexithymia was estimated to be 55%. Among physiotherapy students 24% were found to be at risk of possible Alexithymia. Alexithymia and executive function showed significant association with 85% of students demonstrating reduced performance on the trail-making test A (p=0.001). 83.3% of students had low outcomes on the trail-making test B (p=0.002), and 90% of students had low performance on verbal fluency tests (p=0.002). Conclusion: Alexithymia is linked with male gender, marital status, academic year, smoking, internet use and bullying history. We are increasing awareness and developing interventions to enhance the mental well-being of students.

Metacognitive Instruction for Improving the Effectiveness of Collaborative Writing for EFL Learners’ Writing Development

AbstractThere has been substantial research on the effects of metacognitive instruction on improving L2 learners’ language skills. However, little is known about the impact of such instruction on improving the effectiveness of L2 students’ collaborative writing. To fill this research gap, we conducted a quasi-experimental study to investigate how such an instructional programme would help Chinese EFL learners’ writing development through collaborative writing. A total of 62 post-graduate students from a university in central China were randomly allocated to either an experimental group receiving three weeks of collaborative writing interventions with metacognitive instruction for writing collaboratively, or a control group that was taught via a genre-based approach. Pre-test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-tests were administered with both groups at the onset, immediately after, and six weeks after the interventions to compare their change in writing production, specifically in lexical complexity, accuracy, and fluency. Results revealed that the metacognitive instruction and collaborative writing interventions helped improve participants’ writing performance in lexical variation, accuracy, and fluency. However, no significant effects were observed in lexical density and lexical sophistication. We discuss the results for their pedagogical and theoretical implications.

Assessment of phonemic verbal fluency in Portuguese patients with multiple sclerosis

ABSTRACT Background Executive dysfunction occurs in 15% to 20% of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and verbal fluency tests are frequently used to assess this deficit. The Word List Generation (WLG) is one of the most used measures in MS. This study aims to compare the performance of WLG of MS patients and healthy controls and to analyze the influence of clinical and demographic factors on the performance of MS patients. Methods One hundred and nine MS patients and an age- and gender-matched group of 138 healthy controls were evaluated with WLG Portuguese version, as well as other tests from the Brief Repeatable Battery of Neuropsychological Tests (BRBN-T), subtests from WAIS, a phonemic fluency test (M, R, and P), and measures of psychological symptomatology and cognitive fatigue. The MS group (70.6% females) was mainly diagnosed with RRMS (89.2%). Results The MS group performed significantly lower than healthy controls on the WLG. In the MS group, this performance was significantly correlated with the level of education. Significant differences were found between the two groups regarding cognitive fatigue, with MS patients reporting higher levels than healthy controls. However, this variable was not related to the performance on the WLG for MS patients. Conclusions This study suggests that MS is associated with large levels of cognitive decline on the phonemic verbal fluency tests. These results are consistent with other studies and highlight the importance of verbal fluency and cognitive speed measures in the neuropsychological assessment of MS. Deficits on this task seem to be highly related to the level of education of the patient rather than other demographic and clinical factors.

Association of the serum levels of saturated fatty acids and mild cognitive impairment: a cross-sectional study.

To investigate the association of serum saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and prevalent mild cognitive impairment (MCI) among middle-aged and elderly Chinese. A total of 607 Chinese adults aged at least 45 years were included in the baseline survey of The Lifestyle and Healthy Aging of Chinese Square Dancer Study. Serum concentrations of individual SFAs including 6 even-chain SFAs (C14:0, C16:0, C18:0, C20:0, C22:0, and C24:0) and 4 odd-chain SFAs (C15:0, C17:0, C21:0, and C23:0), were quantified by Gas chromatography system with a mass spectrometer. According to Petersen's criteria, prevalent MCI was diagnosed by neurologists through uniformed neuropsychological tests, including trail-making test-part B (TMT-B), auditory verbal learning test (AVLT), digit symbol substitution test (DSST), and verbal fluency test (VFT). The median age was 62 years with an interquartile range of 57.0 to 67.0 years, and 86 (14.17%) participants were living with MCI. Higher levels of either even-chain or odd-chain individual SFAs were associated with the higher odds of MCI, and their odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were 2.054 (1.012 to 4.171) for C14:0, 2.246 (1.061 to 4.755) for C16:0, 2.789 (1.321 to 5.886) for C18:0, and 2.329 (1.136 to 4.778) for C15:0, and 2.761 (1.310 to 5.820) for C17:0, respectively. The serum concentration of SFAs was positively related to the odds of MCI in middle-aged and elderly adults. Determining the link between SFAs profiles and MCI may inform a better understanding of the potential role of saturated fat intake on cognitive function.

Investigation of Siblings of Patients Diagnosed with Substance-Induced Psychotic Disorder in terms of Cognitive Functions and Clinical High-Risk State for Psychosis

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the influence of familial predisposition on substance-induced psychosis among healthy siblings of patients diagnosed with substance-induced psychotic disorder, who themselves lack any family history of psychotic disorders. Additionally, the study aimed to explore clinical high-risk states for psychosis, schizotypal features, and neurocognitive functions in comparison to a healthy control group. Method: The study compared healthy siblings of 41 patients diagnosed with substance-induced psychotic disorder with 41 healthy volunteers without a family history of psychotic disorders, matching age, gender, and education. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of participants were obtained using data collection forms. The Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States (CAARMS) and the Structured Interview for Schizotypy-Revised Form (SIS-R) scales were utilized to assess clinical high risk for psychosis. Neurocognitive functions were evaluated with digit span test (DST), trail making test part A-B (TMT), verbal fluency test (VFT), and Stroop test (ST). Results: Analysis using the CAARMS scale revealed that 39% of siblings and 7.3% of the control group were at clinically high risk for psychosis, indicating a significant difference in rates of psychotic vulnerability. Comparison between siblings and the control group showed significant differences in mean SIS-R subscale scores, including social behavior, hypersensitivity, referential thinking, suspiciousness, illusions, and overall oddness, as well as in mean neurocognitive function scores, including errors in TMT-A, TMT-B, and VFT out-of-category errors, with siblings exhibiting poorer performance. Conclusion: Our study suggests that healthy siblings of patients with substance-induced psychosis exhibit more schizotypal features and have a higher risk of developing psychosis compared to healthy controls. Additionally, siblings demonstrate greater impairment in attention, response inhibition, and executive functions compared to healthy controls, indicating the potential role of genetic predisposition in the development of substance-induced psychotic disorder.

The effect of structured brain gym and brisk walking training on the executive functions of university students: a single-blinded randomised controlled trial

ABSTRACT The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of structured brain gym and brisk walking training on the executive functions (inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility) of university students. The study was designed as a single-blinded prospective randomised controlled trial with the participation of university students. 42 sedentary university students(18–25 years) joined in the study. The participants were randomly divided into three groups (two intervention groups and one control group): The Structured Brain Gym Group (SBGG), the Brisk Walking Group (BWG) and the Control Group (CG). The interventions consisted of 50-min exercise twice a week for an 8-week period. BWG attended into brisk walking programme as moderate-intensity aerobic exercise; meanwhile, SBGG performed structured brain gym activities. CG did not participate in any regular physical activities during the 8 weeks. Executive function tests (Stroop colour test, forward and backward digit span test, frontal assessment battery and verbal fluency test) were applied to the participants as a pre-test and post-test. Kruskal–Wallis, Wilcoxon test and Mann–Whitney U tests were used in the statistical analyses. According to the statistical analysis, both BWG and SBGG indicated significant improvement in inhibitory control (p < 0.05) and general frontal functions (p < 0.05) following the intervention. However, compared to BWG, the improvement in inhibitory control was better in SBGG. No change was found in working memory and cognitive flexibility in any of the groups. We can recommend that cognitively demanding and fun aerobic exercise tasks can be used to improve young adult’s inhibitory control.

Bidirectional Associations of Depressive Symptoms and Cognitive Function Over Time

Cognitive decline and depressive symptoms often co-occur among older adults, and they share several mechanisms. Despite the fact that cognitive dysfunction has been linked to increased depressive symptoms, the directionality of this association remains unclear. To examine whether there is a bidirectional association between depressive symptoms and cognitive function in English adults aged 50 years or older throughout a 16-year follow-up period. This cohort study included a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling English adults aged 50 years or older. The current analysis included 8268 eligible participants with relevant data. These participants were examined every other year from 2002 and 2003 until 2018 and 2019, resulting in a follow-up period of up to 16 years. Data were analyzed from July to November 2023. The bivariate dual change score models were used to estimate the multivariable associations between depressive symptoms and cognitive function, which were interchangeably used as exposures and outcomes. Cognitive measures include memory and verbal fluency tests, while the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale evaluated depressive symptoms. The study population of 8268 participants had a mean (SD) age of 64 (10) years at the study baseline, and 4517 participants (55%) were female. Higher depressive symptoms were cross-sectionally associated with poorer memory (β intercept, -0.018; standard error [SE], 0.004; P < .001) and verbal fluency (β intercept, -0.009; SE, 0.004; P = .02) at study baseline. A steeper linear change in depressive symptoms was associated with an accelerated memory change (β intercept, -0.253; SE, 0.079; P = .001), and a linear change in memory was associated with an acceleration in depressive symptoms over time (β intercept, 0.016; SE, 0.006; P = .005). This bidirectional change was not observed with verbal fluency. In this study, greater depressive symptoms were associated with poorer memory at the study baseline and steeper memory change over time. A gradual linear change in depressive symptoms contributed to accelerated memory loss and vice versa, suggesting that psychological mood and memory performance are intrinsically associated.

Normative Data Study of Verbal Fluency and Naming Tests in Elderly People in Costa Rica

Abstract Objective To generate normative data for the Verbal Fluency Test (VFT) and the Boston Naming Test (BNT) in the Costa Rican population. Method The sample consisted of 563 healthy older people (aged 59–90 years). Polynomial multiple regression analyses were run to evaluate the effects of the age, sex, and education variables on VFT and BNT scores. Results The results showed a significant linear effect of education on the four-letter VF scores and an effect of sex on the letter P score, with females performing better than males. The explained variance ranged from 20.9% to 28.3%. A linear effect of age and education was also found for the four semantic VF scores, with scores decreasing with increasing age and lower education. The sex variable was significant for all semantic categories, with females performing better than males except in the animal category. The explained variance ranged from 21.7% to 30.9%. In the BNT, a linear effect of education was found, so that the more education, the better the score. In addition, a sex effect was also found, with males having higher scores than females. The predictors of the model explained 9.6% of the variance. Conclusions This is the first study that generates normative data for the VF and BNT in the Costa Rican population over 59 years of age based on demographic variables. The use of these normative data will help clinicians in Costa Rica to better understand language functioning in the elderly, allowing for better classification and diagnosis in the future.

FRI-095 Privative verbal fluency test (PVFT): a quick-to-use cognitive tool for the screening of covert hepatic encephalopathy

FRI-095 Privative verbal fluency test (PVFT): a quick-to-use cognitive tool for the screening of covert hepatic encephalopathy

Relationships between cognitive flexibility performance and adaptive behavior outcomes in survivors of pediatric brain tumor

Objective: Survivors of pediatric brain tumors are at increased risk of executive function (EF) and adaptive behavior difficulties. While previous research suggests that executive dysfunction impacts suboptimal adaptive outcomes, the specific elements of EF influencing this relationship remain unexplored. This study examines the relationship between cognitive flexibility and adaptive behavior in survivors compared to healthy controls. Methods: 86 survivors (M age(SD)=23.41(4.24), 44 females) and 86 controls (M age(SD)=23.09(4.50), 44 females) completed the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System Trail Making Test (TMT) and Verbal Fluency Test (VFT). The Letter-Number Sequencing (LNS) and Category Switching (CS) conditions were isolated as measures of cognitive flexibility. Informants provided responses to obtain adaptive behavior ratings using the Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised (SIB-R). Linear regressions explored relationships between cognitive flexibility and SIB-R scores in survivors compared to controls. Results: For both TMT and VFT, the relationship between cognitive flexibility and adaptive behavior was significantly different between survivors and controls for SIB-R scores in Social Communication, Community Living, and Personal Living Skills (p<.0125). Survivors’ better LNS performance predicted greater SIB-R scores across the same 3 domains (all p= <.001, r 2semipartial=.08). Similarly, survivors’ better CS performance predicted greater SIB-R scores across the same 3 domains (p = 0.002 to .02, r 2semipartial =.03 to .04). No significant relationships were found in controls (all p >.05). After adjusting for working memory and inhibitory control, most relationships remained significant in survivors (p= <.001 to .046, r 2semipartial=.02 to .08). Conclusion: These findings reveal a robust, positive relationship between cognitive flexibility performance and adaptive behaviors specific to survivors.

Parental Education as a Factor Correlated to Cognitive Performance in Offspring

Abstract Background The purpose of the study was to investigate the correlation between the results of 4 cognitive tests and years of parental education and to analyze their impact on cognitive performance in mentally healthy subjects. Subjects and Methods The sample consisted of 72 mentally healthy subjects (25 men, 47 women) assessed by 4 cognitive tests – the Trail Making Test A (TMT-A), the Trail Making Test Β (TMT-B), Digit Symbol Test (DST) and Verbal Fluency Test (VFT). Results were analyzed with descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation analysis and the partial correlation method to control the influence of one factor on the correlation between two variables. Results More years of parental education were associated with higher cognitive results. All four tests showed that mother's years of education have stronger positive influence on the cognitive performance of the child than fathers's years of education. For mothers this positive influential correlation have reached statistical significance for two cognitive tests – TMT-A (p &lt; .000) and TMT-B (p &lt; .007) and for DST was dose to reaching statistical significance (p &lt;. 103), while for fathers only TMT-A has showed a statistically significant correlation. These general patterns of tendencies of parental education as a factor correlated to cognitive performance in offspring are retained even after Controlling for subject's age or years of education, which independently have strong correlations with the results of the 4 cognitive tests. Conclusions Mother's years of education affect cognitive functions of the offspring much more than father's years of education.

Psychometric properties of the Five-executive Function Tests in Indonesian samples

Difficulties in executive function (EF) may be causative factors in clinical conditions, including learning disabilities, depression, and anxiety. However, defining the structure of EF is an ongoing issue, although Miyake’s three-factor structure is widely accepted. This study aims to discover the underlying factor structure of EF domains, as measured by five tests and the scores of 840 participants, to establish the domains’ validity and reliability. Five neuropsychological tests were included in the exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses (EFA and CFA): the Digit Span (DS); the Stroop Color Word Test (Stroop Test); the phonemic Verbal Fluency Test (pVFT); the Five Point Test (5PT); and the Trail Making Test (TMT). EFA could be meaningfully performed (KMO = .862, Bartlett’s test: 𝜒2 =1393.169, df 45, p .001) and yielded three factors closely mirroring the three core domains of EF. CFA of the model in which the 5PT loaded on factor 2 showed the best goodness of fit indicators, although the difference with the other three-factor models was small. Currently, these EF tests are available in Indonesia and suitable for use, although obtaining normative scores adjusted for demographic factors is necessary.

Effects of Type 2 Diabetes on the Neuropsychological Profile in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Diabetes is one of the main risk factors for developing mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease. Most studies have demonstrated a worse performance in executive function, verbal fluency, and information processing speed in patients with diabetes. To assess the cognitive functioning of persons with type 2 diabetes and amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI-T2DM) compared to persons with aMCI without diabetes and persons without diabetes or aMCI as controls, to understand the role of diabetes in the neuropsychological profile. Cross-sectional study involving a sample of 83 patients, ranging in age from 61 to 85 years and divided into three groups: aMCI-T2DM (27 patients), aMCI (29 patients), Controls (27 individuals). All the participants undertook an exhaustive neuropsychological assessment (auditory-verbal and visual memory, attention, information processing speed, language, executive function, and depression). Both groups of aMCI patients performed significantly worse than the controls in all the neuropsychological tests. A significant linear tendency (p trend < 0.05) was found between groups, with the aMCI-T2DM group presenting worse results in global cognition assessed by the Mini-Mental State Examination and Montreal Cognitive Assessment; Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test; Auditory Verbal Learning Test; Trail Making Test A and B, Verbal Fluency Test, and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. aMCI patients with or without diabetes showed worse cognitive function compared to persons without diabetes or aMCI. Additionally, aMCI patients without T2DM presented a different cognitive profile than aMCI patients with T2DM, which tended towards presenting worse cognitive functions such as global cognition, memory, attention, executive function, and language.

Cognition in children with arachnoid cysts - A five-year follow-up after microneurosurgical fenestration.

In recent years there has been a re-evaluation regarding the clinical implications of temporal lobe arachnoid cysts (temporal arachnoid cysts) in children. These cysts have often been considered asymptomatic, or if symptomatic, only causing focal neurological symptoms or signs of increased intracranial pressure. However, several studies have more recently reported on cognitive symptoms improving after surgery. This study aimed to evaluate if reported cognitive improvement after surgery of temporal arachnoid cysts were stable after five years. Ten consecutive children (m = 14.65; range 12.1-19.415 were assessed cognitively five years after micro-neurosurgical fenestration of a temporal arachnoid cyst. Results were compared to results from their pre- and post-surgical evaluations. Evaluations included the Wechsler-scales, Boston Naming Test (BNT), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), verbal fluency test (FAS) and Rey Complex Figure Test (RCFT). The analysis revealed significant postsurgical improvement compared to baseline on the Wechsler-scales measures of general intelligence (FSIQ), verbal abilities (VCI) and processing speed (PSI). Mean differences after surgery were 8.3 for FSIQ, (p = 0.026), 8.5 for VI (p = < .01) and 9.9 for PSI (p = 0.03). There were no significant differences in mean test results when comparing postsurgical scores with scores five years after surgery, indicating long-term stability of improvements. The results indicate that affected cognitive functions in children with temporal arachnoid cysts improve after surgery and that the improvements remain stable five years later. The improvements and long term stability were also consistent with the experience of both parents and children. The findings provide a strong argument for neurosurgical fenestration of temporal arachnoid cysts in children.

Enhanced Learning and Memory in Patients with CRB1 Retinopathy.

Neuropsychological tests of cognitive function were used to test individuals with CRB1 and non-CRB1 retinopathies and compare results with a standardised normative dataset. CRB1 retinopathy subjects significantly outperformed those with non-CRB1 retinopathy in list learning tasks of immediate (p = 0.001) and delayed memory (p = 0.007), tests of semantic verbal fluency (p = 0.017), verbal IQ digit span subtest (p = 0.037), and estimation test of higher execution function (p = 0.020) but not in the remaining tests of cognitive function (p > 0.05). CRB1 retinopathy subjects scored significantly higher than the normal population in all areas of memory testing (p < 0.05) and overall verbal IQ tests (p = 0.0012). Non-CRB1 retinopathy subjects scored significantly higher than the normal population in story recall, verbal fluency, and overall verbal IQ tests (p = 0.0016). Subjects with CRB1 retinopathy may have enhanced cognitive function in areas of memory and learning. Further work is required to understand the role of CRB1 in cognition.

Association between electroencephalogram alpha-band oscillations and executive and processing functions in patients with cerebral small vessel diseases.

Electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha-band oscillations may reflect executive and processing function in patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD). We aimed to assess such association and its relationship with CSVD severity, and to identify specific alpha-band parameters and the cut-off values for cognitive screening. We analysed the dispersion of amplitude-frequency characteristics of EEG alpha-band and different alpha-band parameters (PFα , ΔPFα , PPα , NCL) in different brain locations. We also assessed patients' executive and processing functions using verbal fluency test (VFT) and color trails test (CTT), and CSVD severity using total burden and Fazekas scores. 129 patients were recruited in the study. After adjusting for age, gender and education, PFα(F3), PFα(F4) and NCL were significantly associated with VFT-composite performance (p < 0.05). CTT-1 time and error were associated with PFα(F3), PFα(F4), ΔPFα(O1;F3) and CSVD severity (p < 0.05), whereas CTT-2 time was only associated with CSVD severity. Moreover, the correlations between alpha-band oscillations and cognitive function were higher in low than in high disease-severity group (ρ: -0.58 vs. -0.38, p < 0.05). The AUC of selected alpha-band parameters were higher than 0.8 for VFT and CTT. Specific alpha-band parameters in the frontal lobe were identified to correspond to executive and processing function. Assessing EEG alpha-band oscillations may assist in screening cognitive impairment.

Small effects of olfactory identification and discrimination on global cognitive and executive performance over 1 year in aging people without a history of age-related cognitive impairment

Olfactory and cognitive performance share neural correlates profoundly affected by physiological aging. However, whether odor identification and discrimination scores predict global cognitive status and executive function in healthy older people with intact cognition is unclear. Therefore, in the present study, we set out to elucidate these links in a convenience sample of 204 independently living, cognitively intact healthy Czech adults aged 77.4 ± 8.7 (61–97 years) over two waves of data collection (one-year interval). We used the Czech versions of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) to evaluate global cognition, and the Prague Stroop Test (PST), Trail Making Test (TMT), and several verbal fluency (VF) tests to assess executive function. As a subsidiary aim, we aimed to examine the contribution of olfactory performance towards achieving a MoCA score above vs. below the published cut-off value. We found that the MoCA scores exhibited moderate associations with both odor identification and discrimination. Furthermore, odor identification significantly predicted PST C and C/D scores. Odor discrimination significantly predicted PST C/D, TMT B/A, and standardized composite VF scores. Our findings demonstrate that olfaction, on the one hand, and global cognition and executive function, on the other, are related even in healthy older people.

Association of physical activity and vitamin D deficiency with cognitive impairment in older adults: a population based cross-sectional analysis.

The global aging situation is becoming increasingly critical and cognitive impairment in the elderly has become a public health burden of concern. Physical activity (PA) and vitamin D may play a key role in improving cognitive impairment. However, little studies have examined the interaction between these two. The purpose of this study was to assess the association of PA and vitamin D with cognitive impairment in older adults, as well as the interactions of PA and vitamin D. This study was conducted by multi-stage random sampling of elderly people ≥60 years old, and a total sample of 2,492 (1,207 male and 1,285 female, mean age of 69.41 ± 6.75 years) with complete data was included in the analysis. PA was assessed by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire, and < 600 MET-min/week was used as the division criteria. Serum vitamin D was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, and 25-hydroxyvitamin D2/D3 concentration < 20 ng/mL was used as a vitamin D deficiency criterion. Cognitive function was assessed by three subtests: the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's disease word learning test (CERAD-WL) for immediate and delayed learning, the Animal Fluency Test (AFT) for verbal fluency; and the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) for information processing speed and switching attention. All three subtests were scored at less than the lowest quartile of the score as a criterion for cognitive impairment. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS for chi-square test, rank sum test, interaction analysis, subgroup analysis, and regression analysis. Lower level of PA is associated with higher odds of cognitive impairment (CERAD W-L: OR = 1.596, 95% CI: 1.338-1.905, p < 0.001; AFT: OR = 1.833, 95% CI: 1.534-2.190, p < 0.001; DSST: OR = 1.936, 95% CI: 1.609-2.329, p < 0.001). Vitamin D deficiency has significant effects in AFT (OR = 1.322, 95% CI: 1.103-1.584, p = 0.003) and DSST (OR = 1.619, 95% CI: 1.345-1.948, p < 0.001). After adjusted for covariates, PA and vitamin D have multiplicative interaction on AFT (OR = 0.662, 95% CI: 0.448-0.977, p = 0.038) and DSST (OR = 0.775, 95% CI: 0.363-0.868, p = 0.009). The interaction between PA and vitamin D was not significant in the CERAD W-L (OR = 0.757, 95% CI: 0.508-1.128, p = 0.172). The results showed that lower level of PA and vitamin D deficiency were associated with higher odds of cognitive impairment in the elderly population and that there was a multiplicative interaction between PA and vitamin D on cognitive function, with a significant effect of vitamin D on cognitive impairment in high PA conditions.