Word List Generation Research Articles

Reliability and Construct Validity of Three Self-report Questionnaires Assessing Dual-Task Difficulties in People With Multiple Sclerosis: An International Study

ObjectiveTo evaluate the reliability and validity of the dual-tasking questionnaire (DTQ), dual-task screening list (DTSL), and dual-task impact on daily life activities questionnaire (DIDA-Q). DesignMulticenter, cross-sectional study SettingPersons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) were recruited from 7 multiple sclerosis centers across 6 countries (Belgium, Chile, Italy, Israel, Spain, and Turkey). ParticipantsA total of 356 pwMS (mean age 47.5±11.5y, expanded disability status scale, 3.79±1.83) were enrolled. InterventionsNot applicable Main Outcome MeasuresThe reliability (internal consistency, test-retest, and measurement error) and construct validity (structural and convergent) were assessed. ResultsThe DTQ, DTSL, and DIDA-Q demonstrated excellent test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients [95% CI], 0.84 [0.80-0.87] to 0.90 [0.87-0.92]) and internal consistency (Cronbach α: 0.86-0.96). As hypothesized, the 3 questionnaires showed a strong correlation with each other, moderate-to-strong correlations with other self-report questionnaires (perceived walking difficulties, fatigue, and fear of falling), and low-to-moderate correlations with cognitive information processing speed, manual dexterity, and dual-task walking performance (walking with word list generation task), showing convergent validity. The DIDA-Q exhibited systematically superior properties. These results were also verified in subsets from 6 different countries. In the structural validity analysis, all questionnaires displayed 2 main factors, allocated as “motor-driven” and “cognitive-driven” subscales. ConclusionsThe DTQ, DTSL, and DIDA-Q have good-to-excellent measurement properties, with the highest properties observed in DIDA-Q. The use of these self-reported questionnaires can be used in research and clinical practice to assess the effect of dual-task difficulties on the daily life of ambulatory pwMS.

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.

The Effect of Cognitive Task, Gait Speed, and Age on Cognitive-Motor Interference during Walking.

Dual-tasking can cause cognitive-motor interference (CMI) and affect task performance. This study investigated the effects of age, gait speed, and type of cognitive task on CMI during gait. Ten younger and 10 older adults walked on a pressure-sensitive GAITRite walkway which recorded gait speed and step length. Participants walked at a slow, preferred, or fast speed while simultaneously completing four cognitive tasks: visuomotor reaction time (VMRT), serial subtraction (SS), word list generation (WLG), and visual Stroop (VS). Each combination of task and speed was repeated for two trials. Tasks were also performed while standing. Motor and cognitive costs were calculated with the formula: ((single-dual)/single × 100). Higher costs indicate a larger reduction in performance from single to dual-task. Motor costs were higher for WLG and SS than VMRT and VS and higher in older adults (p < 0.05). Cognitive costs were higher for SS than WLG (p = 0.001). At faster speeds, dual-task costs increased for WLG and SS, although decreased for VMRT. CMI was highest for working memory, language, and problem-solving tasks, which was reduced by slow walking. Aging increased CMI, although both ages were affected similarly by task and speed. Dual-task assessments could include challenging CMI conditions to improve the prediction of motor and cognitive status.

The potential of using corpus-based technologies for incidental vocabulary learning of General Maritime English

Introduction. The article addresses the problem of expanding the potential vocabulary of cadets of maritime educational institutions in the process of listening comprehension determined by the need to develop strategies for independent vocabulary acquisition necessary for autonomous learning of maritime English. The purpose of this article is to justify the application of corpus technologies for the selection of vocabulary items, which will allow students to master the strategies required to expand vocabulary in the process of autonomous listening, and increase the efficiency of learning and teaching maritime English. Materials and Methods. The study follows the two-level Maritime English learning model incorporating General Maritime English and Specialized Maritime English. The first component focuses on the linguistic content embedded in the generalized maritime context and prioritizes the lexical and cognitive approaches highlighting the necessity of their integration and emphasizing corpus tools the application of which is helpful in topic-related vocabulary selection through instructional, linguistic and statistic principles on the basis of authentic texts. Results. The article describes the preliminary stage of potential vocabulary acquisition by junior cadets through listening comprehension and proposes the procedure of text selection for context-specific raw corpus design and thematic word list generation. Through the computer processing of the wordlist and the analysis of the concordance lines, the independent vocabulary learning strategies were identified and ranked. The conclusion was drawn about the correlations between the basic word learning potential and the number of independent word learning strategies applied. Conclusions. The findings of the research add to the understanding of the potential of corpus-based technologies for the topical vocabulary selection and analysis in order to develop cadets’ independent word learning strategies that are significant for potential vocabulary acquisition through listening comprehension.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) measurements and cognitive performance in multiple sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Several studies report mixed associations between the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness with cognitive and physical disability in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Systematic synthesis of these findings is crucial in deriving credible conclusions. Five databases were searched from their inception to March 2022. The inclusion criteria for studies were MS-specific and required RNFL and cognitive performance data in order to be analyzed. The selection processes followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The systematic review yielded 31 studies that investigated the association between RNFL thickness and cognitive performance. Twenty-two studies reported positive associations, and nine did not. The meta-analysis included 11 studies with a total of 782 PwMS with mean age of 40.5years, mean Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) of 2.7, and disease duration of 11.3years. RNFL thickness was significantly associated Symbol Digit Modalities Test (pooled r = 0.306, p < 0.001), Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (pooled r = 0.374, p < 0.001) and Word List Generation (WLG, pooled r = 0.177, p < 0.001). RNFL was also significantly correlated with visuospatial learning and memory tests (pooled r = 0.148, p = 0.042) and verbal learning and memory tests (pooled r = 0.245, p = 0.005). Within three eligible studies, no significant association between ganglion cell inner-plexiform layer and SDMT 0.083 (95% CI -0.186, 0.352) was noted. The heterogeneity was high in all correlation studies (I2 > 63% and p < 0.008) except for the WLG and visuospatial memory findings. RNFL thickness is associated with cognitive processing speed, verbal learning and memory, visual learning and memory, as well as verbal fluency in PwMS. The number of studies included in the meta-analyses were limited due to non-standardized reporting.

Metabolic syndrome parameters and multiple sclerosis disease outcomes: A Portuguese cross-sectional study

BackgroundMetabolic syndrome and multiple sclerosis [MS] share the presence of chronic inflammation in their pathogenic mechanisms. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of metabolic syndrome parameters in MS and their association with disease disability, cognitive function, and Neurofilament Light chain [NfL] levels. MethodsClinical, analytical, and magnetic resonance imaging data were obtained through medical records. Disease disability was measured by the Expanded Disability Status Scale [EDSS], the MS Severity Scale [MSSS] along with cognitive impairment by the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for MS [BICAMS] and Word List Generation test [WLG]. Metabolic syndrome parameters were evaluated by fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, blood pressure, and waist circumference [WC]. We also analysed serum leptin and ghrelin and cerebrospinal fluid NfL. ResultsOur sample included 51 people with MS, 34 (66.7%) females, mean age of 38.20±12.12 years and median disease duration of 3 years (P25=2.0, P75=5.0). Multivariate linear regression analysis confirmed that WC correlates with EDSS (β=0.04, p=.001) and MSSS (β=0.07, p=.002) as well as Brief Visuospatial Memory Test-Revised (β=-0.29, p=.008), WLG (β=-0.20, p=.039). NfL is also negatively associated with HDL-C (β=-4.51, p=.038). ConclusionsWaist circumference is associated with disability and deficits in cognitive tests. A decrease in HDL-C is associated with an increase in NfL. This suggests metabolic syndrome might be an important factor in MS disease course.

Comparing the effects of cognitive dual tasking on balance and gait motor performance in people with mild multiple sclerosis and healthy individuals

Background/Aims People with multiple sclerosis show both cognitive and postural impairment, and various static and dynamic postural activities may be affected under conditions of cognitive distraction. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of cognitive dual tasking on the balance and gait motor performance of people with mild multiple sclerosis (Expanded Disability Status Scale score of 2.0 ± 1.3) and healthy people and to compare these two groups in terms of performing single and dual tasks. Methods People with mild multiple sclerosis (n=39) and healthy individuals (n=33) performed static balance tests (Romberg's Test, tandem stance test, single-legged stance test) and dynamic balance tests (Functional Reach Test, Four Square Step Test, Timed Up and Go Test, 10-Metre Walk Test), with and without a word list generation test (single and dual tasks). Independent t-tests were used to evaluate differences between the two groups, and paired t-tests were used for single or dual tasks for all static and dynamic tests. The magnitude of differences in tasks between measures was expressed as Cohen's d. Results Dual task effects were more evident during dynamic balance tests in participants with multiple sclerosis and healthy participants (specifically the Timed Up and Go Test and 10-Metre Walk Test) (P&lt;0.001). There was a significant difference between both groups only in terms of static balance (P&lt;0.001). Conclusions Dynamic balance and gait were shown to be more affected when performing the dual cognitive task than static balance in people with multiple sclerosis. Dual tasks should be included in diagnoses.

The Grievance Dictionary: Understanding threatening language use

This paper introduces the Grievance Dictionary, a psycholinguistic dictionary that can be used to automatically understand language use in the context of grievance-fueled violence threat assessment. We describe the development of the dictionary, which was informed by suggestions from experienced threat assessment practitioners. These suggestions and subsequent human and computational word list generation resulted in a dictionary of 20,502 words annotated by 2318 participants. The dictionary was validated by applying it to texts written by violent and non-violent individuals, showing strong evidence for a difference between populations in several dictionary categories. Further classification tasks showed promising performance, but future improvements are still needed. Finally, we provide instructions and suggestions for the use of the Grievance Dictionary by security professionals and (violence) researchers.

Brain region volumes and their relationship with disability progression and cognitive function in primary progressive multiple sclerosis.

Background and purposeEvidence on regional changes resulting from neurodegenerative processes underlying primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS) is still limited. We assessed brain region volumes and their relationship with disability progression and cognitive function in PPMS patients.MethodsThis was an MRI analysis of 43 patients from the prospective Understanding Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (UPPMS) cohort study. MRI scans were performed within 3 months before enrollment and at month 12.ResultsGray matter volume of declive and white matter volumes adjacent to left straight gyrus, right calcarine sulcus, and right inferior occipital gyrus significantly decreased from baseline to month 12. Baseline white matter volumes adjacent to right amygdala and left cuneus significantly differed between patients with and without disability progression, as well as baseline gray matter volumes of left cuneus, right parahippocampal gyrus, right insula, left superior frontal gyrus, declive, right inferior temporal gyrus, right superior temporal gyrus (pole), and right calcarine sulcus. Baseline gray matter volumes of right cuneus and right superior temporal gyrus positively correlated with 12‐month Selective Reminding Test and Word List Generation performance, respectively. Gray matter changes in right superior semilunar lobe and white matter adjacent to left declive and right cerebellar tonsil also positively correlated with Word List Generation scores, while white matter change in left inferior semilunar lobe positively correlated with Symbol Digit Modalities Test performance after 12 months.ConclusionsWhite and gray matter volumes of specific brain regions could predict disability progression and cognitive performance of PPMS patients after one year.

Dual-Task Performance in Multiple Sclerosis' Patients: Cerebellum Matters?

Gait, cognitive impairments, and their mutual influence in dual tasking (cognitive-motor dual tasking, CM-DT) are important to address therapeutic approaches in patients with multiple sclerosis (PMS). CM-DT correlates have been widely investigated with variable and dissimilar results, due to differences in methods. However, although the cerebellum has recently shown to be involved in both motor and cognitive functions, few studies have explored its role in the integration of the concurrent execution of gait and cognition. This case-control study aims to explore the effects of adding a cognitive task to walking in PMS and to investigate the role of the cerebellum in the interfering process. In total, 20 patients and 18 healthy controls (HC) underwent clinical assessments, dual task (DT), and 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). DT was composed by three 2-min trials requiring fast walking. In 2 of them 2 different cognitive tasks were added. Both groups evidenced the presence of cognitive-motor interference (CMI) for both cognitive conditions with a greater effect of word list generation task in PMS. Analysis of variance between HC and patients with high or low performances showed a significantly increased volume in Vermis lobules VIIIa and IX of high performers compared with HC. Our results show that CMI is also present in healthy individuals but is significantly more disabling in PMS. Furthermore, MRI data point to the existence of an initial mechanism of cerebellar reorganization in PMS with lower interference. Subsequently, the failure of this mechanism due to the progression of disability leads to a more evident expression of symptoms.

Perceived fatigue in multiple sclerosis: The importance of highlighting its impact on quality of life, social network and cognition

ObjectivesTo study the relationship between perceived fatigue and heath related quality of life (HRQoL), social support and cognition in an Argentinean population of patients with MS (PwMS). Patients and Methods128 PwMS were studied, 75 women (58 %). Mean age: 40 ± 10.49 years-old, education: 14 ± 3.04, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS): 2.43 ± 1.87, evolution: 10.07 ± 7.23 years. Instruments: Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS); EDSS; Beck's Depression Inventory II (BDI-II); International Quality of Life questionnaire (MusiQoL); Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey (MOS); BICAMS Battery, 7/24 Spatial Recall Test, Paced Auditory Serial Task (PASAT-3), Word list generation task (WLG). ResultsSixty-six patients (51.6 %) presented fatigue. Significant differences were found between fatigued and non-fatigued patients in EDSS and BDI II (p < 0.001). Fatigue was associated with age, EDSS and BDI II (p < 0.05). When analyzing differences in HRQoL between fatigued and non-fatigued patients statistically significant differences were found in MusiQol (p < 0.05). FSS proved to be an independent predictor of HRQoL (typified β =-0.612 and -0.287, p < 0.05). Fatigued patients had fewer friends in their social support network (p = 0.031) and worse performance in PASAT. FSS was established as an independent predictor of PASAT (β = -0.280, p = 0.009) ConclusionFatigue is one of the most common symptoms in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and has a great impact on patients daily life. This study highlights the importance of studying fatigue and treating it properly, since otherwise, it contributes to the dysfunction of patients daily life with psychological and social consequences.

Neuropsychological Performance 1 Year After Status Epilepticus in Adults.

Status epilepticus (SE) may lead to or worsen cognitive dysfunction. Few studies have evaluated magnitude and profile of cognitive dysfunction in patients after SE. Characterization of cognitive deficits may be important for rehabilitation and follow-up. We assessed cognitive function in a consecutive, non-selected group of relatively healthy survivors with a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery. A total of 33 patients (24 men, 9 women; mean age 54,9years, mean education 11,8years) were tested 1year after SE with Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Fourth edition (WAIS-IV), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, subtests from the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised, Phonemic and Semantic word list generation, and the Halstead-Reitan Battery. Premorbid IQ was estimated with a Norwegian version of the National Adult Reading Test (NART). Results were compared to published norms. Regression analyses and independent groups t-tests were performed to assess the influence of background variables. Mean performance generally was about one standard deviation below average. Full scale IQ (WAIS-IV) was significantly reduced compared to estimated premorbid IQ (NART). Negative influence on cognition of brain lesions visible on computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging and duration of SE >30min was shown by group comparisons. SE represents a marker for possible cognitive dysfunction, and follow-up with neuropsychological assessment and cognitive rehabilitation seems warranted in most patients. Complex problem-solving abilities with high general sensitivity to brain impairment showed the most prominent reduction. Otherwise, no specific profile of domain affection was found. Structural brain lesions and duration of SE over 30min represent risk factors for cognitive deficit.

Measurement of language laterality using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a comparison of different tasks.

Background: Relative blood flow in the two middle cerebral arteries can be measured using functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD) to give an index of lateralisation as participants perform a specific task. Language laterality has mostly been studied with fTCD using a word generation task, but it is not clear whether this is optimal. Methods: Using fTCD, we evaluated a sentence generation task that has shown good reliability and strong left lateralisation in fMRI. We interleaved trials of word generation, sentence generation and list generation and assessed agreement of these tasks in 31 participants (29 right-handers). Results: Although word generation and sentence generation both gave robust left-lateralisation, lateralisation was significantly stronger for sentence generation. Bland-Altman analysis showed that these two methods were not equivalent. The comparison list generation task was not systematically lateralised, but nevertheless laterality indices (LIs) from this task were significantly correlated with the other two tasks. Subtracting list generation LI from sentence generation LI did not affect the strength of the laterality index. Conclusions: This was a pre-registered methodological study designed to explore novel approaches to optimising measurement of language lateralisation using fTCD. It confirmed that sentence generation gives robust left lateralisation in most people, but is not equivalent to the classic word generation task. Although list generation does not show left-lateralisation at the group level, the LI on this task was correlated with left-lateralised tasks. This suggests that word and sentence generation involve adding a constant directional bias to an underlying continuum of laterality that is reliable in individuals but not biased in either direction. In future research we suggest that consistency of laterality across tasks might have more functional significance than strength or direction of laterality on any one task.

Application of deep learning and target visual detection in english vocabulary online teaching

The corpus software has many functions, such as keyword retrieval, context co-occurrence, word list generation and word frequency statistics. It can quickly and accurately provide various corpus and information, such as word-formation collocation, context, word frequency and so on. In this paper, the author analyzes the application of deep learning and target visual detection in English vocabulary online teaching. Deep learning is a kind of machine learning algorithm which includes multi-layer non-linear mapping and tries to obtain high-level abstract representation of data. By extracting features from information, the identifiable components in the image can be extracted. The results show that the application of corpus in College English vocabulary teaching can promote students’autonomous use of corpus in English vocabulary learning. The simulation experiment improves the performance of the system by choosing parameters, and the classification accuracy is more than 90%. Corpus can enable students to learn real and natural language and master natural collocation. At the same time, corpus can help students understand the semantic and pragmatic norms of words in communication and recognize the characteristics of register variants. Future research can use Map-reduce technology to accelerate the training process, save training time and test more hyperparameters.

Development of a Custom Spell-Checker for Emergency Department Data

ObjectiveTo share progress on a custom spell-checker for emergency department chief complaint free-text data and demonstrate a spell-checker validation Shiny application.IntroductionEmergency department (ED) syndromic surveillance relies on a chief complaint, which is often a free-text field, and may contain misspelled words, syntactic errors, and healthcare-specific and/or facility-specific abbreviations. Cleaning of the chief complaint field may improve syndrome capture sensitivity and reduce misclassification of syndromes. We are building a spell-checker, customized with language found in ED corpora, as our first step in cleaning our chief complaint field. This exercise would elucidate the value of pre-processing text and would lend itself to future work using natural language processing (NLP) techniques, such as topic modeling. Such a tool could be extensible to other datasets that contain free-text fields, including electronic reportable disease lab and case reporting.MethodsChief complaints may contain words that are incorrect if they are misspelled (e.g.,“patient has herpertension”), or, if the word yields a syntactically incorrect phrase (e.g., the word “huts” in the phrase: “my toe huts”).We are developing a spell-checker tool for chief complaint text using the R and Python programming languages. The first stage in the development of the spell-checker is the identifying and handling of misspellings; future work will address syntactic errors. Known abbreviations are identified using regular expressions, and unknown abbreviations are addressed by the spell-checker. The spell checker performs 4 steps on chief complaint data: identification of misspellings, generation of a substitute candidate word list, word sense disambiguation to identify replacement word, and replacement of the misspelled word, based on methods found in the literature.[1] As the spell-checker requires a dictionary of correctly spelled, healthcare-specific terms including all terms that would appear in an ED corpus, we used vocabularies from the Unified Medical Language System, ED-specific terminology, and domain expert user input. Dictionary construction, misspelling identification algorithms, and word list generation algorithms are in the development stage.Simultaneously, we are building an R Shiny interactive web application for syndromic surveillance analysts to manually correct a subset of misspelled words, which we will use to validate and evaluate the performance of the spell-checker tool.[1] Tolentino HD, Matters MD, Walop W, et al. A UMLS-based spell checker for natural language processing in vaccine safety. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making. 2007;7(1). doi:10.1186/1472-6947-7-3.ResultsProject still in development phase.ConclusionsThe audience will learn about important considerations for developing a spell-checker, including those for data structure of a dictionary and algorithms for identification of misplaced words and identification of candidate replacement words. We will demonstrate our word list generation algorithm and the Shiny application which uses these words for spell-checker validation. We will share relevant code; after our presentation, audience members should able to apply code and lessons to their own projects and/or to collaborate with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Cognitive-motor interference in persons with multiple sclerosis during five upper limb motor tasks with different complexity

Background: Cognitive-motor interference in multiple sclerosis has been well examined during walking, but not during upper limb (UL) performance. Objectives: To examine the dual-task cost (DTC) in persons with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) and healthy controls (HC) in various type and complexity of UL motor tasks. Method: In total, 30 pwMS without major UL impairment and 30 HC performed five different UL tasks, in single condition and combined with the phonemic word list generation task. The percent change in performances was evaluated by the motor, cognitive, and combined DTC. The motor tasks consisted of four unimanual (sustained hand grip strength, box-and-block test, Purdue pegboard test, finger tapping task) and one bimanual task (Purdue pegboard test). Group and task differences were analyzed with unpaired and paired t-tests, respectively, and overall effect with a multivariate analysis of variance. Results: The motor DTC ranged between 10% (Purdue pegboard bimanual) and 35% (box-and-block test). The cognitive DTC ranged between −8% (finger tapping test) and +21% (bimanual Purdue pegboard). The magnitude of the combined DTC did not differ significantly between pwMS and HC in any task. Conclusion: DTC is influenced by the complexity of the UL task, but was not significantly different between HC and cognitive intact, but mildly motor disabled pwMS.

Measurement of language laterality using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a comparison of different tasks.

Background: Relative blood flow in the two middle cerebral arteries can be measured using functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD) to give an index of lateralisation as participants perform a specific task. Language laterality has mostly been studied with fTCD using a word generation task, but it is not clear whether this is optimal. Methods: Using fTCD, we evaluated a sentence generation task that has shown good reliability and strong left lateralisation in fMRI. We interleaved trials of word generation, sentence generation and list generation and assessed agreement of these tasks in 31 participants (29 right-handers). Results: Although word generation and sentence generation both gave robust left-lateralisation, Bland-Altman analysis showed that these two methods were not equivalent. The comparison list generation task was not systematically lateralised, but nevertheless laterality indices (LIs) from this task were significantly correlated with the other two tasks. Subtracting list generation LI from sentence generation LI did not affect the strength of the laterality index. Conclusions: This was a pre-registered methodological study designed to explore novel approaches to optimising measurement of language lateralisation using fTCD. It confirmed that sentence generation gives robust left lateralisation in most people, but is not equivalent to the classic word generation task. Although list generation does not show left-lateralisation at the group level, the LI on this task was correlated with left-lateralised tasks. This suggests that word and sentence generation involve adding a constant directional bias to an underlying continuum of laterality that is reliable in individuals but not biased in either direction. In future research we suggest that consistency of laterality across tasks might have more functional significance than strength or direction of laterality on any one task.

Measurement of language laterality using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a comparison of different tasks

Background: Relative blood flow in the two middle cerebral arteries can be measured using functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD) to give an index of lateralisation as participants perform a specific task. Language laterality has mostly been studied with fTCD using a word generation task, but it is not clear whether this is optimal. Methods: Using fTCD, we evaluated a sentence generation task that has shown good reliability and strong left lateralisation in fMRI. We interleaved trials of word generation, sentence generation and list generation and assessed agreement of these tasks in 31 participants (29 right-handers). Results: Although word generation and sentence generation both gave robust left-lateralisation, lateralisation was significantly stronger for sentence generation. Bland-Altman analysis showed that these two methods were not equivalent. The comparison list generation task was not systematically lateralised, but nevertheless laterality indices (LIs) from this task were significantly correlated with the other two tasks. Subtracting list generation LI from sentence generation LI did not affect the strength of the laterality index. Conclusions: This was a pre-registered methodological study designed to explore novel approaches to optimising measurement of language lateralisation using fTCD. It confirmed that sentence generation gives robust left lateralisation in most people, but is not equivalent to the classic word generation task. Although list generation does not show left-lateralisation at the group level, the LI on this task was correlated with left-lateralised tasks. This suggests that word and sentence generation involve adding a constant directional bias to an underlying continuum of laterality that is reliable in individuals but not biased in either direction. In future research we suggest that consistency of laterality across tasks might have more functional significance than strength or direction of laterality on any one task.

Measurement of language laterality using functional transcranial Doppler ultrasound: a comparison of different tasks

Background: Relative blood flow in the two middle cerebral arteries can be measured using functional transcranial Doppler sonography (fTCD) to give an index of lateralisation as participants perform a specific task. Language laterality has mostly been studied with fTCD using a word generation task, but it is not clear whether this is optimal. Methods: Using fTCD, we evaluated a sentence generation task that has shown good reliability and strong left lateralisation in fMRI. We interleaved trials of word generation, sentence generation and list generation and assessed agreement of these tasks in 31 participants (29 right-handers). Results: Although word generation and sentence generation both gave robust left-lateralisation, Bland-Altman analysis showed that these two methods were not equivalent. The comparison list generation task was not systematically lateralised, but nevertheless laterality indices (LIs) from this task were significantly correlated with the other two tasks. Subtracting list generation LI from sentence generation LI did not affect the strength of the laterality index. Conclusions: This was a pre-registered methodological study designed to explore novel approaches to optimising measurement of language lateralisation using fTCD. It confirmed that sentence generation gives robust left lateralisation in most people, but is not equivalent to the classic word generation task. Although list generation does not show left-lateralisation at the group level, the LI on this task was correlated with left-lateralised tasks. This suggests that word and sentence generation involve adding a constant directional bias to an underlying continuum of laterality that is reliable in individuals but not biased in either direction. In future research we suggest that consistency of laterality across tasks might have more functional significance than strength or direction of laterality on any one task.

Cognitive impairment in early stages of multiple sclerosis is associated with high cerebrospinal fluid levels of chitinase 3-like 1 and neurofilament light chain.

Chitinase 3-like 1 (CHI3L1) and neurofilament light chain (NF-L) are promising biomarkers of disability in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, their role in cognitive dysfunction remains elusive. Here, we aimed to correlate cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of CHI3L1 and NF-L with cognitive status in MS. Fifty one recently diagnosed patients were cognitively evaluated and CSF was collected. Levels of CHI3L1 and NF-L were determined by ELISA. Spearman's partial correlation coefficient was performed. After adjusting cognitive scores by age, anxiety and EDSS, association was detected between CHI3L1 levels and Trail Making Test A (rs = 0.348; p = 0.016) and between NF-L levels and Word List Generation (rs = -0.324; p = 0.025). High levels of CSF CHI3L1 and NF-L are associated with cognitive impairment in the early phases of MS.