Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology最新文献

Objective: Attentional Control Theory (ACT) posits that anxiety impacts cognitive functioning through interference in working memory and processing efficiency, resulting in performance deficits in set-shifting and inhibition. Few studies have examined the effects of anxiety on set-shifting and inhibition in clinical samples or how these relationships might be affected by age. The current study tested whether increased age, elevated anxiety, and their interaction were associated with reduced performance on measures of set-shifting and inhibition.

Method: Symptom and neuropsychological testing data were obtained from outpatient participants presenting at an academic medical center (N = 521; mean age = 50.39 years, SD = 22.35, range = 18-90; 47.4% female; 78.3% White). The Trail Making Test Difference score was used to assess set-shifting and the Stroop Color-Word Test Interference score was used to assess inhibition.

Results: After controlling for demographic variables, ADHD diagnosis, depression symptoms, and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), both age and anxiety were significant predictors of set-shifting (β = 0.45 and β = 0.18, respectively, ps < 0.001) and inhibition (β = -0.37, p < 0.001 and β = -0.19, p = 0.001, respectively). No interaction was found between age and anxiety in the prediction of set-shifting or inhibition.

Conclusion: Congruent with ACT, anxiety was associated with worse performance on measures of set-shifting and inhibition. Older age was an independent predictor of worse set-shifting and inhibition but did not moderate the relationship between anxiety and attentional control, suggesting that anxiety adversely affected working memory and processing efficiency equivalently across the adult lifespan. The results highlight the importance of anxiety assessment in neuropsychological evaluation in patients of all ages.

Objective: Research demonstrates reduced cognitive flexibility and weak central coherence during acute illness and following recovery from anorexia nervosa (AN). This systematic review investigated if these impairments are present in first-degree relatives of individuals with AN, representing a possible neuropsychological risk profile.

Methods: A systematic review of electronic databases was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The search ended on July 14, 2023. Established search terms and inclusion criteria identified relevant research. Risk of bias was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program. The review was registered with Prospero international prospective register of systematic reviews (No. CRD42023401268). Study selection, descriptive data, critical appraisal, and risk of bias are presented in tables and figures.

Results: The search yielded 10 studies. The included studies conducted neuropsychological assessments of discordant AN relatives and lifetime longitudinal study participants. Most studies found cognitive flexibility and central coherence to be significantly reduced in participants with AN and their relatives compared with controls. One study found decision making to be significantly impaired in AN participants and relatives. Effect sizes were moderate to large.

Discussion: Reduced cognitive flexibility and weak central coherence appear to be endophenotypes of AN. Further research is required with relatives concordant for AN to establish whether these biomarkers co-segregate with AN within families. These findings suggest a possibility of developing screeners to identify individuals at risk of AN allowing for early intervention.

The global impact of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic has extended beyond physical health, leading to widespread mental health issues. Beyond respiratory symptoms, there is a growing concern about long-term cognitive effects, particularly in individuals who experienced mild cases of the infection. We aimed to investigate the neuropsychological aspects of long-term COVID-19 in non-hospitalized adults compared with a control group. This cross-sectional study included 42 participants, 22 individuals with a history of mild COVID, and 20 healthy controls. The participants were recruited from the community and underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment. Participants from the mild COVID group reported cognitive symptoms persisting for an average of 203.86 days and presented a higher frequency of psychological treatment history (81.8%) compared with the control group (25.0%). History of anxiety disorders was more prevalent in the mild COVID group (63.6%) than in the control group (20.0%). Significant reductions in verbal working memory were observed in the mild COVID group. Levels of anxiety were found to have a significant impact on difficulties with visual recognition memory. This study reveals important neuropsychological alterations in individuals following mild COVID-19, emphasizing executive functions deficits. Our findings underscore the persistence of these deficits even in non-hospitalized cases, suggesting potential inflammatory mechanisms in the central nervous system. The study highlights the need for comprehensive assessments and targeted interventions to address the diverse cognitive impacts on individuals recovering from COVID-19.

High-quality and accessible education is crucial for advancing neuropsychology. A recent study identified key barriers to board certification in clinical neuropsychology, such as time constraints and insufficient specialized knowledge. To address these challenges, this study explored the capabilities of advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) language models, GPT-3.5 (free-version) and GPT-4.0 (under-subscription version), by evaluating their performance on 300 American Board of Professional Psychology in Clinical Neuropsychology-like questions. The results indicate that GPT-4.0 achieved a higher accuracy rate of 80.0% compared to GPT-3.5's 65.7%. In the "Assessment" category, GPT-4.0 demonstrated a notable improvement with an accuracy rate of 73.4% compared to GPT-3.5's 58.6% (p = 0.012). The "Assessment" category, which comprised 128 questions and exhibited the highest error rate by both AI models, was analyzed. A thematic analysis of the 26 incorrectly answered questions revealed 8 main themes and 17 specific codes, highlighting significant gaps in areas such as "Neurodegenerative Diseases" and "Neuropsychological Testing and Interpretation."

Objective: We examined the user experience in different modalities (face-to-face, semi-automated phone-based, and fully automated phone-based) of cognitive testing in people with subjective cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment.

Method: A total of 67 participants from the memory clinic of the Maastricht University Medical Center+ participated in the study. The study consisted of cognitive tests in different modalities, namely, face-to-face, semi-automated phone-based guided by a researcher, and fully automated phone-based without the involvement of a researcher. After each assessment, a user experience questionnaire was administered, including questions about, for example, satisfaction, simplicity, and missing personal contact, on a seven-point Likert scale. Non-parametric tests were used to compare user experiences across different modalities.

Results: In all modalities, user experiences were rated above average. The face-to-face ratings were comparable to the ratings of the semi-automated phone-based assessment, except for the satisfaction and recommendation items, which were rated higher for the face-to-face assessment. The face-to-face assessment was preferred above the fully automated phone-based assessment on all items. In general, the semi- and fully automated phone-based assessments were comparable (simplicity, conceivability, quality of sound, visiting the hospital, and missing personal contact), while on all the other items, the semi-automated phone-based assessment was preferred.

Conclusions: User experience was rated high within all modalities. Simplicity, conceivability, comfortability, and participation scores were comparable in the semi-automated phone-based and face-to-face assessment. Based on these findings and earlier research on validation of the semi-automated phone-based assessment, the semi-automated assessment could be useful for screening for clinical trials, and after more research, in clinical practice.

Objective: Cognitive dysfunction has been observed consistently in a subset of breast cancer survivors. Yet the precise neurophysiological origins of cancer-related cognitive decline remain unknown. The current study assessed neural noise (1/f activity in electroencephalogram [EEG]) in breast cancer survivors as a potential contributor to observed cognitive dysfunction from pre- to post-treatment.

Methods: We measured EEG in a longitudinal design during performance of the paired-click task and the revised Attention Network Test (ANT-R) to investigate pre- versus post-treatment effects of neural noise in breast cancer patients (n = 20 in paired click; n = 19 in ANT-R) compared with healthy controls (n = 32 in paired click; n = 29 in ANT-R).

Results: In both paradigms, one sensory (paired click) and one cognitive (ANT-R), we found that neural noise was significantly elevated after treatment in patients, remaining constant from pretest to posttest in controls. In the ANT-R, patients responded more slowly than controls on invalid cuing trials. Increased neural noise was associated with poorer alerting and poorer inhibitory control of attention (as measured by behavioral network scores), particularly for patients after treatment.

Conclusions: The current study is the first to show a deleterious effect of breast cancer and/or cancer treatment on neural noise, pointing to alterations in the relative balance of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic inputs, while also suggesting promising approaches for cognitive rehabilitation.

Objective: Pain's impact on executive function is understood and specific cognitive abilities may contribute to coping with pain, though past work is confounded by chronic pain populations. This study aims to understand how executive functioning may predict the experience of pain among healthy adults. It was hypothesized that poorer executive functioning would predict more intense pain perception.

Method: A total of 172 young adults were recruited for participation. Three aspects of executive functioning (i.e., impulsivity, cognitive flexibility, working memory) were assessed before randomizing participants to varying types and levels of stimulated pain.

Results: Results supported the hypothesis that poorer performance on tasks of working memory predicts more intense pain perception.

Conclusions: Findings are counter to past work that has found inhibition may be important for coping, and future research is needed to understand the impact of specific cognitive abilities as well as how this may differ for chronic pain.