Applied Neuropsychology-Adult最新文献

Performance validity tests (PVTs) can be seen as gatekeepers for valid neuropsychological assessment, by marking cognitive test scores that may not reflect true ability levels. The present study explored the significance of repeated validity testing of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), by exploring the potential value of performance consistency across assessments. The operational definition of performance consistency was determined by calculating the mean variation in a participant's PVT scores across three separate assessments. Neuropsychological test data of 24 individuals diagnosed with ADHD were complemented by an analogue study involving 69 typically developing individuals who were allocated to either a control group or a simulation group instructed to feign ADHD. All individuals were assessed with embedded and stand-alone PVTs three times with one-month intervals between each assessment. The rate of failed validity testing remained rather stable across assessments. Significant differences in neuropsychological performance scores occurred between individuals with ADHD and experimental simulators, however, mostly nonsignificant effects of small size emerged when considering performance consistency. Our data demonstrate that the consistency of cognitive performance over repeated assessments may be no effective approach to complement validity assessment. Replication is needed in independent research on larger samples.

This study attempted to partially test the hypotheses recently proposed by Spagnolo, Garvey, and Hallett that patients with functional movement disorders (FMDs) should demonstrate impaired performance when presented with tasks that sample affect expression/perception, working memory, and cognitive/motor control. A retrospective chart review of the neuropsychological test performance of 17 adult FMD patients was performed to test these hypotheses. Performance on the Barrow Neurological Institute Screen for Higher Cerebral Functions, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition, and the modified version of the Halstead Finger Tapping Test were used to measure these behaviors. Patients with FMD had difficulty performing tasks involving affect expression/perception and working memory relative to other cognitive functions. However, only one-third of the sample demonstrated clinically relevant slow finger tapping speeds. Our findings are consistent with the predictions proposed by Spagnolo et al. that disturbance of affect expression/perception and working memory are common in patients with FMD. However, there was less evidence for consistent disturbances in cognitive/motor control. Exploring what FMD patients experience when performing these tasks may facilitate their awareness of how non-neurological factors may contribute to their symptoms.

The current study was conducted with the aim of evaluating the third version of Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE-III), and exploring its diagnostic power for a sample of stroke patients in the Iranian population. This was a cross-sectional analytical study, in which 206 patients with stroke were compared with 200 normal individuals as the control group. The patients were diagnosed based on the findings of neuroimaging and clinical examination by a neurologist. ACE-III, Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly (IQCODE), and The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 (SCID-5) were used to gather the data and assess the vascular dementia in the patients. Furthermore, Cronbach's alpha, Pearson correlation coefficient, discriminant function analysis, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used to respectively measure internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, sensitivity, specificity, and the cutoff point of ACE-III. Internal consistency of ACE-III was excellent (α = 0.92 - 0.95), and convergent validity was measured through calculating the correlation between the scores of ACE-III and MoCA, which was very high (r = 0.957, P < 0.0001). Moreover, overall classification accuracy of ACE-III revealed that it is able to differentiate 87% of patients with vascular dementia from other patients. The area under the ROC curve was found to be 0.84, and cutoff point was 45/46, at which sensitivity and specificity were obtained as 0.72 and 0.90, respectively. ACE-III is a rapid, inexpensive, and efficient tool for evaluating cognitive deficits in specialized neurology clinics to provide a clinical and differential diagnosis of vascular dementia after stroke.

Purpose: To evaluate the cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome scale (CCAS-S) in patients with acute cerebellar stroke (ACS) and examine its relationship with the discharge destination.

Methods: Patients with first-time ACS admitted to our hospital between April 2021 and April 2023 were included. The CCAS-S, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia (SARA) were evaluated 1 week after stroke onset, and Functional Independence Measure (FIM)/Barthel Index (BI) at discharge, duration of hospitalization, and discharge destination were evaluated. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare CCAS-S and variables.

Results: Thirteen consecutive patients with ACS and age-matched comparison groups were included. The MMSE was within the normal range in all patients; however, patients with stroke had a lower total CCAS-S score (median 72, IQR 66-80) and a higher number of failed tests (median 4, IQR 3-5) than comparison. Significant deficits were observed in semantic fluency (p = 0.008), category switching (p = 0001), and similarity (p = 009). Definite CCAS were diagnosed 10 patients, respectively. Patients discharged home showed better SARA and FIM/BI but similar CCAS-S compared to those discharged to rehabilitation hospitals.

Conclusion: In patients with ACS, it is the impairment of motor function, not CCAS, that affects discharge destination.

Introduction: This study aims to assess whether electroencephalogram (EEG) spectral power change scores (e.g. task spectral power subtracted from resting state spectral power) across three different frequency bands, alpha (8-12 Hz), theta (4-7 Hz), and beta (13-30 Hz), predicts self-reported attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms using the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) over and above self-reported executive function (EF) abilities using the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF-A) Global Executive Composite (GEC) T-scores for adults.

Methods: Data were collected at a rural, mid-sized southeastern university (N = 52) and participants received course credit for participation. Participants self-reported ADHD symptoms and EF abilities before completing eyes open resting state and the attention network test (ANT), a common flanker task that measures ability to orient attention, stay alert, and resolve conflict (i.e. distractor arrows) while recording EEG spectral power at electrodes F3 and F4. Bivariate correlations determine associations between EEG measures and self-reported ADHD symptoms and EF abilities. Linear regressions were used to assess whether EEG change scores were predictive of ADHD symptoms over and above EF abilities.

Results: High correlation coefficients were found only when comparing the ASRS and BRIEF-A GEC T-scores (r = .822, p <.001). Regression analyses produced significant results indicating EEG spectral change scores were predictive of ADHD symptoms, over and above GEC T-Scores, for the alpha band but not the theta and beta bands. Additionally, we found an inverse relationship when comparing change scores in the alpha band across the right (F4) and left (F3) hemispheres supporting the theory of frontal asymmetry for individuals with increased ADHD symptoms.

Conclusion: This study is the first to assess the predictive ability of EEG spectral power change scores in predicting ADHD symptoms, which are not solely explained by deficits in executive control. Past research has indicated significant differences when comparing task and resting state spectral power indicating change scores might have some utility in measuring cognitive load, specifically in the alpha band, which has been associated with inhibition, working memory, and anticipation of stimuli. Further research should be conducted to assess the utility change scores might have in providing an objective measure related to a clinical population with ADHD.

Though previous research yielded inconsistent results, studies suggest an association between frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA), mood, and self-regulation. This inconsistency may be explained by the heterogeneity of experimental protocols and sample characteristics such as the baseline level of distress. The aim of the study was to gain a better understanding of the relationship between FAA and self-report measurements of depression, anxiety, stress, and self-regulation. Using data from 130 participants (M_age = 25.2; SD = 6.8), we conducted correlation analyses and Bayesian statistics to examine these associations. The results revealed moderate-level positive correlations among depression, anxiety, and stress scores measured by the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, with notable negative correlations observed between self-regulation and depression, as well as between self-regulation and stress. The relationship between FAA and mood was sample-dependent, and effects were restricted to the sample with moderate to extreme levels of distress, revealing consistent patterns within these subgroups. Most importantly, there was a negative correlation between FAA and anxiety. However, there was no clear association between FAA and depression. Consequently, our results show that self-regulation is associated with reduced distress, and that FAA may be a useful biomarker for anxiety in individuals with moderate to high baseline distress levels.

The term "brain fog" has emerged from the observations of neuropsychiatric conditions present in post-COVID-19 infections. This is characterized by concentration and memory problems, selective attention disorders and difficulties in executive functions, yet it is unclear how long these deficits may persist and which cognitive functions are most vulnerable. Therefore, there is a need to properly evaluate these cognitive complaints using an assessment tool that specifies their intensity and nature. Our primary objective was to explore subjective perceptions of cognitive functioning in COVID-19-associated with brain fog using a tool that was previously validated for assessing subjective cognitive complaints. A total of 68 participants were recruited and the Subjective Scale to Investigate Cognition (SSTICS) was used to assess cognitive complaints. This was the first time that the SSTICS was used for this purpose in subjects with COVID-19. In addition, participants were administered a questionnaire assessing for the presence of various symptoms, as well as COVID-19 clinical parameters. The neuropsychological basis for the construct of the SSTICS was related to the cognitive complaints expressed by participants. A reliability analysis of our sample indicated a high degree of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha= 0.951). Associations between various SSTICS scores and COVID-related symptomatology and the differences between group of participants who reported cognitive complaints ("complainers") and those who did not were assessed. We performed an exploratory factorial analysis based on Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Based on their distribution, participants were grouped into: "good functioning" - scores 0-9 (35.3%); "medium functioning" - scores 14-23 (25%); and "poor functioning" - scores 26-71 (39.7%). The mean SSTICS score was 20.59 (SD 16.61) and correlated with the quarantine duration and loss of smell. Complainers differed significantly from non-complainers in the total number of symptoms, the quarantine duration and the presence/absence of specific symptoms, such as loss of smell, tiredness and aches/pains. Our study showed that >10% of patients reported subjective cognitive complaints following COVID-19, with most reporting mild or serious cognitive complaints, mostly within the domains of memory, attention, language, executive functioning or praxis.

Measures of complex functional decision-making capacity can greatly aid in assessing mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and facilitating early intervention in dementia care. We examined the ability of the Assessment of Functional Capacity Interview (AFCI) to detect functional differences among older adults who were cognitively unimpaired (CU), or who presented with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) or MCI. A sample of 97 older adults (CU; n = 30, Mage = 74.64 ± 7.42 years; SCD; n = 34, Mage = 72.56 ± 6.43 years; MCI; n = 33, Mage = 78.28 ± 7.55 years) underwent neuropsychological testing and responded to the Financial Capacity Instrument (FCI-SF). Informants completed the Assessment of Functional Capacity (AFCI), an instrument of functional decision-making capacity, and responded to the Social Vulnerability Scale (SVS15) and Amsterdam Instrumental Activity of Daily Living (A-IADL-Q-SV), a measure of functional status, for comparison. According to informant-reported responses, the CU group had significantly lower AFCI total (and domain) scores, H(2) = 27.59, p<.001, relative to MCI. Additionally, the CU group had significantly lower AFCI scores in the Home and Personal Safety domain relative to the SCD group, H(2) = 14.06, p<.05. In the overall sample, AFCI total scores were associated with FCI-SF, SVS15, and A-IADL-Q-SV scores and cognitive measures. Our results demonstrate that the AFCI is sensitive to impairment in safety, social, financial, and medical functioning in MCI and is associated with measures of cognitive functioning and social vulnerability in older adults. Incorporating this instrument as a supplement to cognitive screening instruments may aid in the prevention of hazardous decision-making in older adults.

This study evaluated the universality of the TOMM 2 and provided a reference sample of cognitively intact adults living in Spain whose native language was Spanish. A total of 203 adults completed the TOMM 2 from June 2019 to January 2020. When using the original TOMM cutoff scores derived from English speakers, all participants scored in a range that would suggest that they passed the TOMM. When using a cut score less than 40 on Trial 1, only one participant in this study would be mistakenly classified as providing an invalid performance. Spanish-speaking adults in Spain from this study achieved a perfect score on Trial 1 at a rate more than double that of English-speaking individuals on the original TOMM. At the item level, all but one item met the minimum standard for performance validity; this item fell only marginally below the standard at 89%. This study found a very low failure rate for the TOMM 2, suggesting that the second edition has at least as high specificity as the original in Spanish adults.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurological disorder that primarily affects movement and is often accompanied by depressive symptoms. Subthalamic nucleus (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) has emerged as a therapeutic intervention for PD, although its impact on depressive symptoms remains complex. This study investigates the relationship between PD, DBS, and depressive symptoms, focusing on how DBS influences cognitive function and mood among PD patients in Brazil. The study involved two cohorts: one in 2019 with 46 participants and another in 2022 with 31 patients. Distinct assessment instruments, including the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 and Beck Depression Inventory-II, were employed to evaluate depressive symptoms. The results revealed no significant correlation between participants' gender and the presence of DBS, but substantial differences were observed in age, disease duration, and Activities of Daily Living scores. Patients undergoing DBS showed notably poorer cognitive performance compared to those treated solely with medication. Furthermore, the use of DBS was associated with higher scores on depressive symptoms scales within one of the cohorts. These findings underscore the intricate interplay among PD, DBS treatment, and depressive symptoms, highlighting the necessity for tailored approaches to patient care.